Best Stingless Bee

The Jataí bee (Tetragonisca angustula) is a small, stingless social bee native to Central and South America. It is highly adaptable and frequently nests in urban environments, making it one of the most easily managed species in modern meliponiculture. Unlike honeybees, they do not sting, but they de...

Melipona quadrifasciata is a species of stingless bee native to Brazil. It’s recognized by its uniquely patterned abdomen and plays a vital role in producing local honey. These bees are crucial for sustainable beekeeping practices within the region, supporting traditional livelihoods and biodiversit...

Tetragonula carbonaria is a species of stingless bee found in Australia. It’s recognized for building complex, spiraling honeycomb structures called sugarbags inside tree cavities. These bees are primarily utilized by researchers studying social insect behavior and honeybee biology. Their unique nes...

Melipona scutellaris is a species of stingless bee found within the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. It’s notable for producing unique honey valued for its medicinal properties due to specific floral sources and chemical composition. These bees are primarily cultivated by beekeepers seeking this specializ...

Wallacetrigona incisa is a stingless bee recorded from Sulawesi, Indonesia, and the only species placed in the genus Wallacetrigona. Like other stingless bees, it belongs to the tribe Meliponini, whose members are eusocial and possess greatly reduced, nonfunctional stingers. The genus name honors na...

Tetragonisca angustula, commonly known as jataí, is a species of stingless bee native to South America. This small bee is notable for its unique social structure and sophisticated defense mechanisms involving hovering guard bees protecting its nest. It's an extant species found in urban environments...

The Indian stingless bee is a social species of meliponine bee found throughout tropical and subtropical regions of Asia. Unlike the common honeybee, this species lacks a functional stinger and stores its honey in small resinous pots. It is widely utilized in meliponiculture for the production of me...

Melipona rufiventris is a species of eusocial stingless bee native to Brazil, particularly found in the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest regions. Like other members of the genus Melipona, it lacks a functional stinger and typically builds its colonies by constructing wax and resin combs inside pre-existi...

The Vulture Bee, *Trigona hypogea*, is a South American stingless bee distinguished by its unusual diet. This eusocial insect gathers nutrients solely from decaying animal remains, making it the only bee species known to practice necrophagy. It’s of interest to entomologists studying specialized fee...

Melipona flavolineata, commonly known in Brazil as uruçu-amarela, is a species of eusocial stingless bee native to the Amazonian regions of northern Brazil. These bees live in complex colonies and play an essential role as pollinators within both natural forest ecosystems and cultivated agricultural...

The Mandaçaia bee (Melipona quadrifasciata) is a species of eusocial stingless bee native to Brazil. It is easily identified by the four distinctive yellow stripes on its dark abdomen. The bee is highly valued by local beekeepers for its docile nature and the production of highly medicinal honey. It...

Tetragonula carbonaria, commonly called the Sugarbag Bee, is a species of stingless bee native to Australia. These bees construct unique spiral-shaped honeycombs within tree cavities and produce bush honey utilized by indigenous communities for its distinct flavor and traditional uses. The bee’s spe...

Xunan Kab, scientifically known as *Melipona beecheii*, is a species of stingless bee found in Mesoamerica. These bees are notable for producing a unique honey valued for its flavor and potential medicinal properties. Historically, the Maya utilized these bees and their honey, and today, meliponicul...

Melipona mondury is a species of eusocial stingless bee native to the Atlantic Forest biome in eastern Brazil. Like other species in the genus Melipona, it lacks a functional stinger and lives in highly organized colonies. The bees typically establish their nests in hollow tree trunks or wooden stru...

The Uruçu (Melipona scutellaris) is a species of stingless bee native to northeastern South America. It’s notable for producing unique honeys with distinctive flavors valued by food enthusiasts and beekeepers. These bees are eusocial insects within the Apidae family, commonly raised in meliponicultu...

Melipona subnitida, or jandaíra, is a species of stingless bee native to Brazil’s Caatinga region. This bee produces a unique honey valued for its flavor and medicinal properties due to its adaptation to the dry, hot climate. It's primarily studied by biologists researching Brazilian biodiversity an...

Melipona bicolor is a species of stingless bee found in Brazil. It’s recognized for its unique eusocial behavior and the remarkable ability of its colonies to support multiple queen bees. These bees play an important role in pollination within their native ecosystem and are studied by researchers in...

Cretotrigona prisca was a species of extinct stingless bee from the Cretaceous period. Fossilized within 90-million-year-old New Jersey amber, it represents one of the oldest known bees. Its discovery provides valuable insight into early bee evolution and offers paleontologists a rare glimpse into i...

Tetragonula hockingsi is a native Australian stingless bee belonging to the Tetragonulinae subfamily. It’s notable for its distinctive sugarbag honeycombs and surprisingly robust defensive behavior when protecting its colony. These bees are primarily found in eastern Australia and are of interest to...

The Mandaçaia (Melipona quadrifasciata) is a species of stingless bee found in South America. It's notable for its uniquely patterned abdomen and vital contribution to pollinating diverse plant life within the Atlantic Forest ecosystem. These bees play a significant role in maintaining biodiversity,...

Scaptotrigona mexicana is a species of stingless bee found primarily in Mexico. These bees are notable for producing a unique type of honey valued for its flavor profile and nutritional content. They are traditionally managed by indigenous communities who utilize their hives for honey collection and...

Melipona mandacaia is a species of stingless bee found exclusively in the Brazilian Caatinga biome. It’s recognized for constructing unique, downward-facing nests made from beeswax. These bees are crucial pollinators within this fragile ecosystem and represent an important part of Brazil's biodivers...

Jandaíra (Melipona subnitida) is a species of stingless bee found in South America’s Caatinga biome. This eusocial insect is notable for its adaptation to semi-arid conditions and its production of honey valued for its unique flavor profile. Researchers, beekeepers specializing in native bees, and c...

Nannotrigona testaceicornis is a tiny stingless bee native to South America, particularly Brazil, and is managed locally for crop pollination rather than honey.

Scaptotrigona postica is a eusocial stingless bee in the family Apidae, native to South America and particularly associated with Brazil. It lives in perennial colonies with queens, workers, and males, and nests in cavities where the colony stores honey and pollen. The species is kept in meliponicult...

Tetragonisca fiebrigi is a species of stingless bee native to subtropical regions of South America, found in Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, and Bolivia. The species is distinguished from the closely related Tetragonisca angustula by its yellow mandibles. Like other stingless bees, it lives in permanen...

Tetragonula laeviceps is a species of small, eusocial stingless bee native to Southeast Asia. It forms permanent colonies with a structured caste system and is widely utilized in meliponiculture, particularly in countries such as Thailand. The species is commercially managed by farmers for two prima...

Melipona marginata, commonly known as manduri, is a small species of stingless bee native to the Atlantic Forest region of Brazil. Like other members of the tribe Meliponini, it is a eusocial bee that constructs permanent colonies and produces a distinct type of liquid honey. This species plays a si...

Melipona bicolor, commonly known as Guaraipo, is a species of stingless bee native to South America, particularly the Atlantic Forest region of Brazil. Unlike most eusocial bees, Melipona bicolor colonies can function with multiple fertile queens simultaneously, a characteristic known as polygyny th...