Apidae

The Apidae are a family of bees, encompassing over 20,000 species, including familiar types like honeybees and bumblebees. Bees are insects closely related to wasps, with the key difference being that bees feed their young pollen and honey, while wasps feed their young animal matter. Bees are entirely dependent on flowers for food, gathering pollen and nectar, and in doing so, they play a crucial role in the cross-pollination of plants. While many bees are solitary, meaning each female builds her own nest, social bees like honeybees and bumblebees live in colonies with a caste system. The Apidae family includes bumblebees, honeybees, stingless bees, carpenter bees, and digger bees.12