Members of the family Apidae are commonly known as honey bees, bumble bees, carpenter bees, long-horned bees, squash bees, digger bees, cuckoo bees, stingless bees, and orchid bees. One hundred eighteen (118) species of apid bees have been recorded in Pennsylvania [1]. Of these species, only two (Apis mellifera – the European honey bee, and Anthophora villosula) are not native to North America (indicated by an asterisk; *). This family contains five species of conservation concern in Pennsylvania: Bombus affinis – the rusty patched bumble bee (endangered), Bombus fervidus – the yellow bumble bee (declining), Bombus pensylvanicus – the American bumble bee (declining), Bombus terricola – the yellow banded bumble bee (declining), and Epeoloides pilosulus (rare within its range since the 1960s) (indicated by orange text). Worldwide, this family has over 5,920 species described [2].
General identifying morphological characters include:
- Three submarginal cells on the forewing
- Long tongue length
- Small to very large size
- Wide range of colors and patterns
- Many species are covered in hairs and have structures on their hind legs for carrying pollen, resin, and/or oils
Nesting habitats
Bees in this family have a wide range of nesting habits. Solitary species often nest in tunnels that they dig in the ground or construct in wood. Others nest in cavities, including honey bees and bumble bees, with honey bees typically preferring trees/buildings while bumble bees prefer underground spaces or dense clumps of vegetation.
Sociality
Most species in this family are solitary or semi-social. Carpenter bees (Ceratina and Xylocopa spp.) may be solitary or exhibit cooperative breeding with a weak social structure. A few groups are primitively eusocial (most species of bumble bees, Bombus spp.) or fully eusocial (honey bees, Apis spp.).
Other behavioral or biological traits
Apidae is one of the most diverse families in terms of behavior and biological traits. Even closely related species or groups of species can be very different! Notably, some species are specialists that only collect pollen from certain plant species, while others are broad generalists that collect pollen from many different types of plants. Most bees in this family store food for their young in their own nests, but others are social parasites or cleptoparasites. Parasitic bees invade and lay their eggs in the nest of another bee species. Either the adult parasite or their larva kills the host’s young in the nest. Then, the parasite’s larva eats the food that the host stored. In this way, social parasites and cleptoparasites take advantage of the other species’ efforts to build a nest and collect food.
Species list
A checklist of apid bees recorded in Pennsylvania is presented below. For each species, we list the counties, date ranges, and the most recent years they have been collected or observed in the openly-accessible checklist [see 1].
Genus Anthophora — 5 species
Anthophora (Anthophora) villosula Smith, 1854 *
Anthophora (Clisodon) terminalis Cresson, 1869
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) ursina Cresson, 1869
Anthophora (Melea) abrupta Say, 1837
Anthophora (Melea) bomboides Kirby, 1837
Genus Apis — 1 species
Apis (Apis) mellifera mellifera (L., 1758) *
Genus Bombus — 18 species
Bombus (Bombias) auricomus (Robertson, 1903)
Bombus (Bombus) affinis Cresson, 1863
Bombus (Bombus) terricola Kirby, 1837
Bombus (Cullumanobombus) griseocollis (DeGeer, 1773)
Bombus (Cullumanobombus) rufocinctus Cresson, 1863
Bombus (Psithyrus) ashtoni (Cresson, 1864)
Bombus (Psithyrus) citrinus (Smith, 1854)
Bombus (Psithyrus) insularis (Smith, 1861)
Bombus (Psithyrus) fernaldae (Franklin, 1911)
Bombus (Pyrobombus) perplexus Cresson, 1863
Bombus (Pyrobombus) bimaculatus Cresson, 1863
Bombus (Pyrobombus) impatiens Cresson, 1863
Bombus (Pyrobombus) ternarius Say, 1837
Bombus (Pyrobombus) sandersoni Franklin, 1913
Bombus (Pyrobombus) vagans vagans Smith, 1854
Bombus (Subterraneobombus) borealis Kirby, 1837
Bombus (Thoracobombus) fervidus (F., 1798)
Bombus (Thoracobombus) pensylvanicus (DeGeer, 1773)
Genus Ceratina — 5 species
Ceratina (Zadontomerus) calcarata Robertson, 1900
Ceratina (Zadontomerus) dupla Say, 1837
Ceratina (Zadontomerus) floridana Mitchell, 1962
Ceratina (Zadontomerus) mikmaqi Rehan & Sheffield, 2011
Ceratina (Zadontomerus) strenua Smith, 1879
Genus Epeoloides — 1 species
Epeoloides pilosulus (Cresson, 1878)
Genus Epeolus — 6 species
Epeolus americanus (Cresson, 1878)
Epeolus autumnalis Robertson, 1902
Epeolus bifasciatus Cresson, 1864
Epeolus lectoides Robertson, 1901
Epeolus pusillus Cresson, 1864
Epeolus scutellaris Say, 1824
Genus Eucera — 6 species
Eucera (Cemolobus) ipomoeae (Robertson, 1891)
Eucera (Peponapis) pruinosa (Say, 1837)
Eucera (Synhalonia) atriventris (Smith, 1854)
Eucera (Synhalonia) dubitata (Cresson, 1878)
Eucera (Synhalonia) hamata (Bradley, 1942)
Eucera (Synhalonia) rosae (Robertson, 1900)
Genus Habropoda — 1 species
Habropoda laboriosa (F., 1804)
Genus Holcopasites — 2 species
Holcopasites calliopsidis calliopsidis (Linsley, 1943)
Holcopasites illinoiensis (Robertson, 1891)
Genus Melecta — 1 species
Melecta (Melecta) pacifica Cresson, 1878
Genus Melissodes — 16 species
Melissodes (Apomelissodes) apicatus Lovell & Cockerell, 1906
Melissodes (Apomelissodes) fimbriatus Cresson, 1878
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) agilis Cresson, 1878
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) boltoniae Robertson, 1905
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) denticulatus Smith, 1854
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) dentiventris Smith, 1854
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) druriellus (Kirby, 1802)
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) fumosus LaBerge, 1961
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) illatus Lovell & Cockerell, 1906
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) niveus Robertson, 1895
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) subillatus LaBerge, 1961
Melissodes (Eumelissodes) trinodis Robertson, 1901
Melissodes (Heliomelissodes) desponsus Smith, 1854
Melissodes (Melissodes) bimaculatus bimaculatus (Lepeletier, 1825)
Melissodes (Melissodes) communis communis Cresson, 1878
Melissodes (Melissodes) tepaneca Cresson, 1878
Genus Melitoma — 1 species
Melitoma taurea (Say, 1837)
Genus Nomada — 39 species
Nomada affabilis Cresson, 1878
Nomada articulata Smith, 1854
Nomada australis Mitchell, 1962
Nomada rubicunda Olivier, 1812
Nomada placida Cresson, 1863
Nomada armatella Cockerell, 1903
Nomada bethunei Cockerell, 1903
Nomada ceanothi Cockerell, 1907
Nomada composita Mitchell, 1962
Nomada cressonii Robertson, 1893
Nomada denticulata Robertson, 1902
Nomada depressa Cresson, 1863
Nomada fragariae Mitchell, 1962
Nomada gracilis Cresson, 1863
Nomada illinoensis Robertson, 1900
Nomada imbricata Smith, 1854
Nomada integerrima Dalla Torre, 1896
Nomada lehighensis Cockerell, 1903
Nomada luteola Olivier, 1812
Nomada luteoloides Robertson, 1895
Nomada obliterata Cresson, 1863
Nomada parva Robertson, 1900
Nomada pygmaea Cresson, 1863
Nomada sayi Robertson, 1893
Nomada skinneri Cockerell, 1908
Nomada sulphurata Smith, 1854
Nomada ulsterensis Mitchell, 1962
Nomada valida Smith, 1854
Nomada vicina Cresson, 1863
Nomada xanthura Cockerell, 1908
Nomada bella Cresson, 1863
Nomada cuneata (Robertson, 1903)
Nomada lepida Cresson, 1863
Nomada maculata Cresson, 1863
Nomada ovata (Robertson, 1903)
Nomada perplexa Cresson, 1863
Nomada superba Cresson, 1863
Nomada fervida Smith, 1854
Nomada tiftonensis Cockerell, 1903
Genus Ptilothrix — 1 species
Ptilothrix bombiformis (Cresson, 1878)
Genus Svastra — 2 species
Svastra (Anthedonia) compta (Cresson, 1878)
Svastra (Epimelissodes) obliqua caliginosa (Cresson, 1878)
Genus Triepeolus — 12 species
Triepeolus atripes Mitchell, 1962
Triepeolus concavus (Cresson, 1878)
Triepeolus donatus (Smith, 1854)
Triepeolus helianthi (Robertson, 1897)
Triepeolus lunatus (Say, 1824)
Triepeolus nevadensis (Cresson, 1878)
Triepeolus pectoralis (Robertson, 1897)
Triepeolus quadrifasciatus atlanticus Mitchell, 1962
Triepeolus remigatus (F., 1804)
Triepeolus rhododontus Cockerell, 1921
Triepeolus rugosus Mitchell, 1962
Triepeolus simplex Robertson, 1903
Genus Xylocopa — 1 species
Xylocopa (Xylocopoides) virginica virginica (L., 1771)
Additional information about species in this family is available at:
References
- Kilpatrick SK, Gibbs J, Mikulas MM, Spichiger S-E, Ostiguy N, Biddinger DJ, López-Uribe MM (2020) An updated checklist of the bees (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Anthophila) of Pennsylvania, United States of America. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 77: 1–86. https://doi.org/10.3897/jhr.77.49622
- Ascher JS, Pickering J (2020) Discover Life bee species guide and world checklist (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila). http://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?guide=Apoidea_species
Photo Credit
USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab
How to Cite this Webpage
Kilpatrick SK, López-Uribe MM (2020) Apidae. http://lopezuribelab.com/apidae/
Updated 29 June 2020