Bee

Bee, any of about 20,000 species of flying insects of the superfamily Apoidae. Bees cross-pollinate plants and convert nectar into honey. Social bees (honeybees and bumblebees) live in complex societies of 10,000–50,000 members. Headed by the queen (who lays up to 2,000 eggs a day), the colony also includes female workers, who collect pollen and build cells, and fertile male bees, or drones.

See also: Beeswax; Honey; Pollen; Bumblebee.