A family of solitary bees including the genus Colletes, characterized by their ability to secrete cellophane-like lining in nesting burrows.
From 'Colletes' + '-idae' (Linnaean suffix for family classification). This standardized naming convention organizes all similar bee species into one taxonomic family.
The '-idae' suffix is how scientists organize life—every creature you've never heard of probably has a formal family name following Linnaean conventions from the 1700s that we still use today.
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