56 WM. H. A8HMEAD. 



Front wings with two submarginal cells; head and thorax bare or nearly; 

 second recurrent nervure always straight; lingua very short and 

 broad, shallowiy or very obtusely triangularly emargiuate at apex: 

 hind femora without a pollen brush or flocculus. 



Fain. XIV. PKUSOl'ID.K. 



Family I. APWM. 



To this family, as here restricted, belong all the genuine honey- 

 making social bees, living in large communities and consisting of 

 three sexes, females ( or queens), workers and males. Here belong 

 the common hive-bee, the domesticated bees of various countries 

 and the stingless bees of subtropical and tropical regions. 



The family is at once distinguished from all the other families of 

 bees by the total absence of apical spurs on the hind tibia?, by the 

 venation of the front wings, and by the workers being furnished 

 with corbiculse. This last character is absent in all other bees, 

 except in the Bombida? and Euglossida', which, however, are large, 

 robust bees, with two apical spurs on the hind tibia?, while the vena- 

 tion of the front wings is quite different. 



Two subfamilies have been recoguized, distinguished as follows: 



Ta b le of Subfam Hies. 



Front wings with two (rarely three) distinct cubital cells, the marginal cell 

 lanceolate, slightly open at apex ; stigma lanceolate or uarrow ovate ; 

 eyes bare, extending to base of mandibles ; 9 an< l 5 without a sting, 



but both with corbiculse Subfamily I. Meliponin.k. 



Front wings with three distinct cubital cells, the marginal cell rounded and 

 closed at apex ; eyes hairy, not extending to base of mandibles; 9 all< l 

 $ with a sting, $ only with corbiculse ; eyes in % holoptic. 



Subfamily II. Apin.e. 



Subfamily I. Meliponinje. 



(The Stingless Honey-bees). 



This subfamily is readily distinguished from the common honey or 

 hive-bees by the venation of the front wings, the bare eyes, which 

 extend to the base of the mandibles, the 9 and £ being without a 

 sting, and by the simple not cleft claws. 



Three genera have been recognized, only two of which are known 

 to me, Melipona and Trigona. Some authors would unite both 

 under the older name Melipona, but since they are readily separable, 

 I believe it best to retain both genera. 



