The honeybee, Apis mellifera, was introduced to Australia by the first European settlers to pollinate their fruit trees and to provide honey and beeswax. Honeybees have become feral throughout Western Australia wherever they have access to water. The honeybee is the only bee in Australia that will attack and sting aggressively and is the only species to leave a sting in the victim. While the majority of native bees are capable of stinging, they do so only under duress.
The five Australian bee families are Stenotritidae, Colletidae, Halictidae, Megachilidae and Apidae. The first, comprised of about 50 species in two genera, Ctenocolletes and Stenotritus, is restricted to Australia. The
remaining families occur world-wide. Oddly, two virtually world-wide families (Andrenidae and Melittidae) are absent from Australia.
Further reading: Michener, C.D (2007). The Bees of the World, 2nd edition (John Hopkins University Press).
Author: Terry Houston, July 2011