apidæ

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. A family of melliferous or anthophilous aculeate hymenopterous insects; the typical bees, with the mouth-parts short and stout, as distinguished from the other bees, or Andrenidœ, which have a long trunk. The family contains Apis (the hive-bees), Bombus (the bumblebees), and many other genera of social bees, besides a number of solitary ones, as Xylocopa (the carpenter-bees), etc. See bee, Apis, and cuts under Anthophora and carpenter-bee.
2. Same as Apodidœ.