Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea. They are currently considered a clade, called
Anthophila. There are over 20,000 known species of bees in seven recognized biological families. Some speciesย โ including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless beesย โ live socially in colonies while most species (>90%)ย โ including mason bees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, and sweat beesย โ are solitary.