Dasypodaidae

The family Dasypodaidae (originally named "Dasypodidae", but that name was preoccupied) is a small bee family, with some 70-80 species in 7 genera, found in Africa and the northern temperate zone, primarily in xeric habitats. Historically, they have been considered a subfamily within the family Melittidae, but recent molecular studies indicate that Dasypodaids are not only ancestral to them, but in fact are the sister taxon to all other bees.Danforth, B.N., Sipes, S., Fang, J., Brady, S.G. (2006) The history of early bee diversification based on five genes plus morphology. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 103: 15118-15123.. The largest genus, Hesperapis, contains some 40 known species, plus several more undescribed, with an unusual disjunct distribution in North America and southern Africa.

They are typically small to moderate-sized bees, with shaggy scopae, and are commonly oligolectic. All members of this family have two submarginal cells in the forewing.

References

• C. D. Michener (2000) The Bees of the World, Johns Hopkins University Press.

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