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How does the narrow waist of Apocrita differ from the body shape of sawflies?
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Hymenoptera
An endangered rusty patched bumblebee (Bombus affinis) browsing on a wild bergamot flower.
The suborder Apocritaâwhich includes ants, bees, and waspsâis distinguished by a narrow constriction at the anterior end of the abdomen that distinctly separates it from the thorax.1
In contrast, members of the suborder Symphyta, such as sawflies, possess a broad midsection where the abdomen meets the thorax. This broad waist is a characteristic feature of these more primitive members of the Hymenoptera order.2