Menu

A honey bee (or honeybee) is any bee that is a member of the genus Apis. They are all eusocial flying insects which live in colonies of various sizes. They are only a small fraction of the 20,000 known species of bee.

They produce and store honey and make perennial, colonial nests from wax. in contrast to the stingless honey bees.

Honey bees are the only living members of the tribe Apini, all in the genus Apis. There are only seven species of honey bee, with a total of 44 subspecies. Historically, from six to eleven species have been recognized.