Recent history and future trends in entomology concerning bees

Bees are critical providers of pollination to agricultural systems and wildlands alike. While vast majority of the research on these insects focused mostly on honey bees as model systems and their contributions to our agricultural production systems, current trends in research have changed to investigate broad diversity of taxa and scientific disciplines. The diversification of fields of study has brought with it (or perhaps been caused by) a shift in the demographics of investigators who now study in the field of melittology. We summarize the recent trends and future directions in the science of bees and the people who study these taxa.