The famous ones
A handful of species out of twenty thousand, but the ones that make honey, live in permanent colonies and dance.
Who counts as a honey bee?
Only bees in the genus Apis are true honey bees. Wikipedia Only two honey bee species have been domesticated: the western honey bee (Apis mellifera) and the eastern honey bee (Apis cerana). Wikipedia
Honey bees probably originated in South and South-east Asia, where every living species except Apis mellifera is native. Wikipedia There were no honey bees in the Americas until Europeans brought them. Wikipedia Europeans brought western honey bees to North America in 1622, when colonies were shipped from England to Virginia. Wikipedia
A colony
A honey bee colony usually has one queen, up to a few thousand male drones in season, and tens of thousands of female workers. Wikipedia Read about the three castes.
Honey bees build hexagonal cells from wax they make themselves. Wikipedia Wax comes out as small clear scales; the workers chew it to build comb. Wikipedia
Honey, by the numbers
Each honey bee makes only about a twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her life. BBC About 10 million foraging trips go into one jar of honey. BBC A forager may visit 2,000 flowers a day. BBC
Honey bees fly at around 13 to 15 mph and can forage up to four miles from the hive, sometimes more. BBC An average colony gets through around 40 kilos of pollen a year. BBC Worldwide, honey bees produce about one billion kilograms of honey a year. BBC
Clever bees
Honey bees can count up to four and remember landmarks. BBC Then there’s the waggle dance.
When a giant hornet attacks a Japanese honey bee nest, about 500 bees ball around it and vibrate their muscles until it overheats at 47 °C. Wikipedia
Swarming
Before a colony swarms, workers raise new queens; the hive may swarm as soon as the queen cells are capped. Wikipedia
Keep your distance and contact a local beekeeping association; many collect swarms. This is general information, not beekeeping advice.
Honey bees around the world
Apis nigrocincta queens have the highest mating frequencies of any honey bee species. Wikipedia Meet the eastern honey bee and the black-banded honey bee in bees of the world.
Honey bees have their own problems. Varroa mites are arguably the biggest threat to honey bees in the United States. Wikipedia See threats.