Systematics and Evolution of the Apoidea

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Bees are the most important pollinating agent in the world, and their biology is of intense interest to agriculturists, the honey industry, behaviorists and investigators into social structures. Charles Michener is one of the world's leading authorities on bees, and he has proposed a five-year synthesis of the classification and ancestor-descendant relationships among the bees of the world. Michener is uniquely qualified to summarize the present understanding of the biology and evolution of bees since their probable divergence from wasps in the Mesozoic Era. In addition to producing a comprehensive classification of families and tribes, Michener will construct phylogenetic hypotheses using cladistic methods, and will formulate identification keys for non-specialists. The proposed project will bring our understanding of bee biology and evolution to a new level of completeness and clarity. It will serve as a foundation for pure and applied bee research for generations.