Stingless bees, sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of bees (about 500 species), comprising the tribe Meliponini (or subtribe Meliponina according to other authors. They belong in the family Apidae, and are closely related to common honey bees, carpenter bees, orchid bees, and bumblebees. The common name is slightly misleading, as male bees and bees of other species such as in the family Andrenidae cannot sting. Meliponines have stingers, but they are highly reduced and cannot be used for defense.