Posts Tagged: leafcutting bee

Piling on the Pollen

It's a native bee. It's a pollinator. And it's a leafcutter. This morning we admired this female leafcutter bee, Megachile fidelis, as identified by native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology at the University of California, Davis. It was foraging on a Mexican...

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile fidelis, foraging on a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile fidelis, foraging on a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Note "the brush of hairs on the underside of her abdomen where she is packing pollen for the trip back to her nest," says native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Note "the brush of hairs on the underside of her abdomen where she is packing pollen for the trip back to her nest," says native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This female leafcutting bee, Megachile fidelis, is loaded with pollen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This female leafcutting bee, Megachile fidelis, is loaded with pollen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

An Uncommon Bee

Sometimes you get lucky.While watching floral visitors foraging last week in our rock purslane (Calandrinia grandiflora), we noticed a tiny black bee, something we'd never seen before.Native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology at the UC Davis Department of...

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile gemula, on rock purslane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile gemula, on rock purslane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile gemula, exiting rock purslane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Female leafcutting bee, Megachile gemula, exiting rock purslane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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