Images

A very deserty looking bee from the deserts of Bryce Canyon National Park. Lovely patterns. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200.

A male, with great, long antennae, the yellow tarsal segments are distinctive in conjuction with the yellow on the clypeus and the slightly weakened veins in the wings. Collected by Tim McMahon and photoed by Dejen Mengis

A male, with great, long antennae, the yellow tarsal segments are distinctive in conjuction with the yellow on the clypeus and the slightly weakened veins in the wings. Collected by Tim McMahon and photoed by Dejen Mengis. Here I see the hands of a Balinese dancer

A male, with great, long antennae, the yellow tarsal segments are distinctive in conjuction with the yellow on the clypeus and the slightly weakened veins in the wings. Collected by Tim McMahon and photoed by Dejen Mengis

Here is a bee that clearly loves woodlands: Lasioglossum versans. In the obscure morphological vernacular of tiny sweat bees, I identify it by its tiny bulging purple "nose" (supraclypeus) and its complete lack of a hair fan on the base of T1.

Often the most common Lasioglossum at a location in the East. This is Lasioglossum versatum. While common it has the sad trait of sometimes looking like L. trigeminum or L. callidum or L. adimirandum. In isolation they all seem so separable, but since they often occur at the same site and have a tendency to look slightly similar it can be a nightmare.

Lasioglossum versatum. One of the most common little sweat bees in the East. Particularly common in the cooler mid-latitudes. These bees can dominate the captures in surveys of bee species of a region. Something of a mess taxonomically.

Lasioglossum foxii, Alleghany County, Maryland, July 2012

Virginia, Page County

One of the many small difficult to separate by species Lasioglossums. This one was identified by Jason Gibbs and found in Fossil Butte, Wyoming at the National Monument. Photograph by Brooke Alexander.

One of the many small difficult to separate by species Lasioglossums. This one was identified by Jason Gibbs and found in Fossil Butte, Wyoming at the National Monument. Photograph by Brooke Alexander.

Lasioglossum rozeni, Female, Frederick County, Maryland, Catoctin Mountain Park, a nest parasite of other Lasioglossum species

I am spacing at the moment as to who lent me these species, but hopefully can track that down and correct the record. Such a lovely odd bee. It forages a dawn in the deserts of the Southwest, is big, lush and lovely. One of only 3 species. This one caught in Wilcox, AZ...probably at the Bee Course. Photographed by Dejen Mengis.

Medeola virginiana - Indian cucumber root. Yes, the root is edible and yummy. Specimen and photo by Helen Lowe Metzman. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200.

Megachile albisecta: An European summer species found on knapweed and thistles. A beautiful and large species. Collected by Jelle Devalez in the Aegean Island of Lesvos, Greece. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200.

Megachile albisecta: An European summer species found on knapweed and thistles. A beautiful and large species. Collected by Jelle Devalez in the Aegean Island of Lesvos, Greece. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200.

I recently spent some time at a family reunion in South Central Texas and, of course, brought my net. Here is Megachile albitarsis, a large ground nesting Meg with its lovely amber red eyes and orange pollen carrying hairs.

Carrying on from the recent posts of Lithurgus chrysurus, here is another European bee that specializes on Knapweed. This specimen from the West Coast, but it occurs throughout North America. Photo by Anders Croft. This bee was collected in the California Central Valley in Yolo County for research on small-scale restoration in agricultural areas.

Megachile apicalis - Invasive species: Specialist on knapweeds: Not common unless you haunt industrial and other wastelands where it can be common. Always carry a net in these areas so that you clearly as seen as a harmless nature nut. Collected in Cumberland, Maryland. Picture by Heagan Ahmed and photoshopped by Elizabeth Garcia.

From Alleghany County in western Maryland in the town of Cumberland down along the Railroad tracks, which is a go to collecting spot for me, since there are almost always tall weeds with bees on them. One wishes that other people did the same things with native meadow plants along roads and yards instead of just mowing them to pieces all the time.

A trinomial: Megachile brevis onobrychidis. Thus it is a declaired subspecies of M. brevis of which there have been several and at least one has turned into a species. Since the distribution of M.