Apidae
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