North American Bees
The approximately 4,000+ native bee species of North America, also known by the scientific name Anthophila, can rightfully be described as…vegetarian wasps.
Bees are considered a monophyletic group or clade, meaning they are believed to have a single common ancestor from which all modern bees have descended. This ancestor would likely have been a predatory or carnivorous wasp. What sets bees apart from their superfamily, Apoidea (which includes both bees and wasps), is their decision to go vegan, subsisting primarily on nectar and pollen.
Bees are distributed among seven families, six of which are found in North America. (The 7th family of bees, Stenotritidae, is primarily found in Australia.)
