Medical Conditions

Insect members of the superfamily Apoidea, found almost everywhere, particularly on flowers. About 3500 species occur in North America. They differ from most WASPS in that their young are fed honey and pollen rather than animal food. Honey is collected in the form of nectar from flowers and concentrated into honey by evaporation. For most people bee stings are of little significance and are treated locally; other persons, however, react with hypersensitivity putting them in serious danger. (Borror, et al., An Introduction to the Study of Insects, 4th ed; Smith, Insects and Other Arthropods of Medical Importance, 1973, p409)