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Eastern Ecological Science Center images.

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Conanthalictus conanthi, m, left side, Cochise Co., AZ
Conanthalictus conanthi, m, left side, Cochise Co., AZ
Conanthalictus conanthi, m, left side, Cochise Co., AZ

A tiny little bee from Arizona. Conanthalictus is usually a specialist on small low growing plants in the waterleaf family. Collected by Tim McMahon or Don Harvey on one of their expeditions to the region. Note the lovely shades of the wing coloration that pop when you use a black background.

A tiny little bee from Arizona. Conanthalictus is usually a specialist on small low growing plants in the waterleaf family. Collected by Tim McMahon or Don Harvey on one of their expeditions to the region. Note the lovely shades of the wing coloration that pop when you use a black background.

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Conura dema, U, Maryland, side
Conura dema, U, Maryland, side
Conura dema, U, Maryland, side

What a little lovely parasitic wasp in the Chalcididae clan. This one appears to be Conura dema, based on picture booking from bugguide.net. I am not sure if that is true or not, but it is a very reasonable match, but I will let experts determine and validate that identification. Captured at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Dorchester County, Maryland.

What a little lovely parasitic wasp in the Chalcididae clan. This one appears to be Conura dema, based on picture booking from bugguide.net. I am not sure if that is true or not, but it is a very reasonable match, but I will let experts determine and validate that identification. Captured at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Dorchester County, Maryland.

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Colletes latitarsis, female
Colletes latitarsis, female
Colletes latitarsis, female

Specialist: Colletes latitarsis, a lover of ground cherry,Physalis, a weedy plant, but a flowering one, and a native one, with its own set of the species that appear to only gather pollen and perhaps nectar from its flowers. This plant though is not uncommon, and occurs in many of the gardens.

Specialist: Colletes latitarsis, a lover of ground cherry,Physalis, a weedy plant, but a flowering one, and a native one, with its own set of the species that appear to only gather pollen and perhaps nectar from its flowers. This plant though is not uncommon, and occurs in many of the gardens.

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Colletes latitarsis, M, Back, Baltimore, MD
Colletes latitarsis, M, Back, Baltimore, MD
Colletes latitarsis, M, Back, Baltimore, MD

Hiding in plain site. Is this Cellophane Bee... Colletes latitarsis is a bee that only feeds its babies pollen from the all american weed. Ground Cherry.... Physalis to you sciencey types. The thing about Physalis is that it is very shy about showing its sexual parts. The flowers dangle underneath its leafy roof and are this side of green for a yellow flower.

Hiding in plain site. Is this Cellophane Bee... Colletes latitarsis is a bee that only feeds its babies pollen from the all american weed. Ground Cherry.... Physalis to you sciencey types. The thing about Physalis is that it is very shy about showing its sexual parts. The flowers dangle underneath its leafy roof and are this side of green for a yellow flower.

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Colletes latitarsis, m, face, Pr. Georges Co, MD
Colletes latitarsis, m, face, Pr. Georges Co, MD
Colletes latitarsis, m, face, Pr. Georges Co, MD

This bee collects pollen from the weedy, but native, Physalis or ground cherry plants. The flowers of this group are low and dangly and tend to be overlooked as does Colletes latitarsis. Likely more common than would appear as it rarely goes into traps and is hard to find unless hunted for directly. Joe Milone was the photographer.

This bee collects pollen from the weedy, but native, Physalis or ground cherry plants. The flowers of this group are low and dangly and tend to be overlooked as does Colletes latitarsis. Likely more common than would appear as it rarely goes into traps and is hard to find unless hunted for directly. Joe Milone was the photographer.

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Colletes phaceliae, f, face, Pennington Co, SD
Colletes phaceliae, f, face, Pennington Co, SD
Colletes phaceliae, f, face, Pennington Co, SD

Ah, Badllands National Parks. One of my favorite places. So very quiet with lots of bees tucked into subtle places. In some places .... huge densities. Here is the common Colletes phaceliae. Lovely in its slightly heart shaped face. Photo by Hannah Sutton.

Ah, Badllands National Parks. One of my favorite places. So very quiet with lots of bees tucked into subtle places. In some places .... huge densities. Here is the common Colletes phaceliae. Lovely in its slightly heart shaped face. Photo by Hannah Sutton.

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Colletes phaceliae, m, back, Pennington Co., SD
Colletes phaceliae, m, back, Pennington Co., SD
Colletes phaceliae, m, back, Pennington Co., SD

Colletes pahceliae - As you might suspect it is a lover of the plant phaceliae. Many of the Colletes are tight plant specialists. Only feeding their babies the pollen from one group of plants. With that lifestyle comes your status becomes linked to the the status of those plants. The status of those native plants are a mirror of how we treat our environments.

Colletes pahceliae - As you might suspect it is a lover of the plant phaceliae. Many of the Colletes are tight plant specialists. Only feeding their babies the pollen from one group of plants. With that lifestyle comes your status becomes linked to the the status of those plants. The status of those native plants are a mirror of how we treat our environments.

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Colletes phaceliae, m, face, Pennington Co., SD
Colletes phaceliae, m, face, Pennington Co., SD
Colletes phaceliae, m, face, Pennington Co., SD

Colletes pahceliae - As you might suspect it is a lover of the plant phaceliae. Many of the Colletes are tight plant specialists. Only feeding their babies the pollen from one group of plants. With that lifestyle comes your status becomes linked to the the status of those plants. The status of those native plants are a mirror of how we treat our environments.

Colletes pahceliae - As you might suspect it is a lover of the plant phaceliae. Many of the Colletes are tight plant specialists. Only feeding their babies the pollen from one group of plants. With that lifestyle comes your status becomes linked to the the status of those plants. The status of those native plants are a mirror of how we treat our environments.

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Colletes robertsonii, f, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska
Colletes robertsonii, f, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska
Colletes robertsonii, f, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska

I stopped by a pullout in the sandhills of Nebraska on my way to the Badlands one year and just did some collecting off the sweet clover and other mostly weedy plants that lined the dirt parking area and along the nearby rail road tracks....fantastically abundant with bees. This was one of them the relatively common Colletes robertsonii. Photo by Erick Hernandez.

I stopped by a pullout in the sandhills of Nebraska on my way to the Badlands one year and just did some collecting off the sweet clover and other mostly weedy plants that lined the dirt parking area and along the nearby rail road tracks....fantastically abundant with bees. This was one of them the relatively common Colletes robertsonii. Photo by Erick Hernandez.

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Colletes robertsonii, m, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska
Colletes robertsonii, m, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska
Colletes robertsonii, m, face, Hooker Co., Nebraska

A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.

A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.

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Colletes solidaginis, f, back, Suffolk, VA
Colletes solidaginis, f, back, Suffolk, VA
Colletes solidaginis, f, back, Suffolk, VA

Not a great specimen, but then again, the species is one we have seen only a few times... you get what you can take. As the name implies there MIGHT be a relationship between this species and golden rod. Is that true? Someone needs to look at little more deeply and perhaps look at the pollen on the bodies of these bees to make such declarations.

Not a great specimen, but then again, the species is one we have seen only a few times... you get what you can take. As the name implies there MIGHT be a relationship between this species and golden rod. Is that true? Someone needs to look at little more deeply and perhaps look at the pollen on the bodies of these bees to make such declarations.

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Coelioxys immaculata, m, face, Caroline County, MD
Coelioxys immaculata, m, face, Caroline County, MD
Coelioxys immaculata, m, face, Caroline County, MD

This bee, Coelioxys immaculata, is an uncommon nest parasite of other bees. Almost by definition it must be less common since the young C. immaculata usurps a cell of a leaf-cutter bee, kills the host baby bee and eats its food before emerging the next year. Note the interesting pattern of lobes on its tail end. Mysterious.

This bee, Coelioxys immaculata, is an uncommon nest parasite of other bees. Almost by definition it must be less common since the young C. immaculata usurps a cell of a leaf-cutter bee, kills the host baby bee and eats its food before emerging the next year. Note the interesting pattern of lobes on its tail end. Mysterious.

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Coelioxys moesta, male, side
Coelioxys moesta, male, side
Coelioxys moesta, male, side

Coelioxys moesta, male, Maryland, Garrett County, Collected by Department of Agriculture

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Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, back, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA
Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, back, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA
Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, back, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA

Super rare. Only a few individuals of this species have been found, but, interestingly, this species has been found twice in Missouri, and once in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida. This one was sent to me by Mike Arduser and collected in Clark County, Missouri. Note the lovely flair of hairs around the end of the abdomen....very distinctive.

Super rare. Only a few individuals of this species have been found, but, interestingly, this species has been found twice in Missouri, and once in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida. This one was sent to me by Mike Arduser and collected in Clark County, Missouri. Note the lovely flair of hairs around the end of the abdomen....very distinctive.

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Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, left side, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA
Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, left side, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA
Coelioxys obtusiventris, f, left side, Clark Co., Rose Pond, CA

Super rare. Only a few individuals of this species have been found, but, interestingly, this species has been found twice in Missouri, and once in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida. This one was sent to me by Mike Arduser and collected in Clark County, Missouri. Note the lovely flair of hairs around the end of the abdomen....very distinctive.

Super rare. Only a few individuals of this species have been found, but, interestingly, this species has been found twice in Missouri, and once in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida. This one was sent to me by Mike Arduser and collected in Clark County, Missouri. Note the lovely flair of hairs around the end of the abdomen....very distinctive.

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Coelioxys rufitarsis, F, Back, NY, Elk Lake
Coelioxys rufitarsis, F, Back, NY, Elk Lake
Coelioxys rufitarsis, F, Back, NY, Elk Lake

Another Coelioxys nest parasite bee from the Adirondack Mountains of New York. This one is a nest parasite of big Leaf Cutters like Megachile latimanus. Here are shots of a male and a female.

Another Coelioxys nest parasite bee from the Adirondack Mountains of New York. This one is a nest parasite of big Leaf Cutters like Megachile latimanus. Here are shots of a male and a female.

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Coelioxys sayi, F, Back Redo, MD, Baltimore
Coelioxys sayi, F, Back Redo, MD, Baltimore
Coelioxys sayi, F, Back Redo, MD, Baltimore

The most common Coelioxys in the East. This is C. sayi. Now, C. sayi is a nest parasite (like all Coelioxys) and it likes to drop its eggs in the nest of what is usually the most common Leaf Cutter in the East Megachile mendica.

The most common Coelioxys in the East. This is C. sayi. Now, C. sayi is a nest parasite (like all Coelioxys) and it likes to drop its eggs in the nest of what is usually the most common Leaf Cutter in the East Megachile mendica.

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