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Social Insects pp 77–121Cite as

Reproduction and Castes in Social Halictine Bees

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Abstract

Parasocial and primitively eusocial bees are found in various families of the Apoidea, but the majority of such forms are in the Halictinae (Family Halictidae, the sweat bees). The Halictinae are an enormous and abundant group, worldwide in distribution, arctic to tropical, and every continent has forms whose social biologies remain unknown. Although a few species nest in rotting wood, most make burrows in the soil. New and interesting types of social organization probably remain to be discovered in this subfamily, for only a tiny fraction of the species have been studied behaviorally.

Contribution number 1779 from the Department of Entomology, University of Kansas, Lawrence

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Added in proof: The following important paper is relevant to several sections of this chapter

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA

    Charles D. Michener

  2. Department of Systematics & Ecology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA

    Charles D. Michener

  3. Department of Snow Entomological Museum, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA

    Charles D. Michener

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  1. Zoologisches Institut Lehrstuhl Entwicklungsphysiologie, Universität Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 7400, Tübingen 1, Germany

    Wolf Engels

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Michener, C.D. (1990). Reproduction and Castes in Social Halictine Bees. In: Engels, W. (eds) Social Insects. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-74490-7_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-74490-7_6

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