<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> <P> Apiformes (from Latin' apis') </P> </Td> </Tr> <P> Apiformes (from Latin' apis') </P> <P> Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their role in pollination and, in the case of the best - known bee species, the European honey bee, for producing honey and beeswax . Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea and are presently considered a clade, called Anthophila . There are nearly 20,000 known species of bees in seven recognized biological families . They are found on every continent except Antarctica, in every habitat on the planet that contains insect - pollinated flowering plants . </P> <P> Some species including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees live socially in colonies . Bees are adapted for feeding on nectar and pollen, the former primarily as an energy source and the latter primarily for protein and other nutrients . Most pollen is used as food for larvae . Bee pollination is important both ecologically and commercially; the decline in wild bees has increased the value of pollination by commercially managed hives of honey bees . </P>

Is a bee an animal or an insect