A honey bee (or honeybee) is any bee that is a member of the genusApis. 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.
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.