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Leafcutter Bee

Family: Megachile

Native Range:

Size:

Active:

Color and Appearance:

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Sweat Bee

Scientific Name: Agapostemon sp.

Family: Halictidae

Native Range:

Size: Small – Medium, 7 – 15 mm (0.3 – 0.6 in)*

Nest: Ground, Loamy soil*

Active: Late spring – fall*

Color and Appearance: Bright green head and thorax, some species with green abdomen, other species with black and white (females), or black and yellow (males) striped abdomen*

Pollen Collection: Scopae hind legs*

Flight Distance: Unknown

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 260.

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Long-Horned Bee

Scientific Name: Melissodes sp.

Family: Apidae

Native Range:

Size: Small – Medium, 7 – 18 mm (0.3 – 0.7 in)*

Nest: Ground

Nest Lining: Wax-like substance

Active: Mid-summer – fall*

Color and Appearance: Robust and hairy, often with pail bands on abdomen in the middle of the abdominal segments. Males: Long antennae*

Pollen Collection: Long scopae on hind legs*

Flight Distance: ~ 2 miles, 3.2 km*

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 266.

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Small Carpenter Bee

Scientific Name: Ceratina sp.

Family: Apidae

Native Range:

Size: Small – Medium, 3 – 15 mm (0.1 – 0.6 in)*

Nest: Pithy stems, wood; Vertical or angled nest orientation*

Nest Materials: Pith and saliva*

Active: Early spring – summer*

Color and Appearance: Blue, black, green, metallic; Cylindrical abdomen, sparsely haired, shiny, often white (or yellow) patch on face*

Pollen Collection: Scopae on hind legs*

Flight Distance: ~ 200 yds, 180m*

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 267.

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Bumble Bee

Scientific Name: Bombus sp.

Family: Apidae

Native Range:

Size: Medium – large, 10 – 23 mm (0.4 – 0.9 in)*

Nest: Colony (eusocial)*

Nesting Location: Rodent holes, leaf piles, ground*

Nest Materials: Was (nectar pots), leaves (insulation)*

Active: Spring – late fall*

Color and Appearance: Black, yellow, white or orange hair, black body; stout, furry, robust, completely hairy*

Pollen Collection: Pollen baskets on hind legs (coriculae)*

Flight Distance: ~ 1 mile, 1.6 km*

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 264.

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Carpenter Bee

Scientific Name: Xylocopa sp.

Family: Apidae

Native Range:

Size: Large, 13 -30mm, (0.5 – 1.25 in)*

Nest: Excavated with mandibles in wood, plant stems*

Nest Lining: Sawdust (plant stems)*

Active: Mid-summer -fall*

Color and Appearance: Black with yellow hairs, bumble bee-like, robust, hairy thorax, shiny black abdomen*

Pollen Collection: Scopae hind legs*

Flight Distance: ~ 1 mile, 1.6 km*

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 267.

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Honey Bee, European

Scientific Name: Apis mellifer

Family: Apidae

Native Range: Europe, naturalized throughout North America, Pennsylvania

Size: Medium, 10 – 15 mm (0.4 – 0.6 in)*

Nest: Social, colony*

Nesting Location: Human-made hives, tree cavities, tree limbs or branches*

Nest Materials: Hexagonal cells of wax*

Active: Early spring – late fall*

Color and Appearance: Black with golden hairs*

Pollen Collection: Pollen baskets on hind legs (coriculae)*

Flight Distance: ~ 2 miles, 3.2 km*

*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 267.