Nomada superba, M, face, West Virginia, Pleasants County

Second in a Series - Wasp or Bee? This is Nomada superba...a bee, but because it lays its eggs in the nests of other bees (likely Eucera species) it has not need for pollen carrying tools and thus retains (or returned to) the form and format of many of the Sphecid Wasps which are teh closest relatives to the wasps we call "bees." A very rare species, this one collected in West Virginia by the fabulous Jane Whitaker who in her post retirement hobby has found many new species of bees in the state.