Category: Cuckoo Bee
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Calliopsis cuckoo nomad bee (Holcopasites calliopsidis)
Apidae > Holcopasites > Holcopasites calliopsidis The best way to find calliopsis-cuckoo nomad (Holcopasites calliopsidis) is to find a nesting aggregation of its panurgine host Calliopsis andreniformis. Even then, you will have to look carefully because this tiny, wasp-like bee is easily overlooked. With sharp eyes, look for a red, gnat-like insect hovering low over…
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Holcopasites
If you’re not looking for Holcopasites, you might not see them. These very tiny cuckoo bees are easily overlooked, but up close are brightly colored with bold markings. In our region, you are most likely to encounter H. calliopsidis hovering above dry, hard-packed earth where its host campus bees Calliopsis andreniformis are nesting. Aside from…
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Sphecodes
Sphecodes are a group of diverse and enigmatic cleptoparasites. Members of this genus are thought to predominately parasitize nests of other ground or wood-nesting bees, mainly Lasioglossum, but also Halictus, Agapostemon, Augochlorella, Andrena, Perdita, and Calliopsis. Deciphering the host associations of Sphecodes can be quite a challenge because their phenology does not always mirror that…
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Coelioxys dolichos
Megachilidae > Coelioxys > Coelioxys dolichos Coelioxys dolichos is a big, distinctive sharptail of the southern US. Oddly enough, this cuckoo bee looks a bit like its host Megachile xylocopoides—glossy dark all over with purplish wings held out at an angle. C. dolichos just creeps into the northeast region in Maryland and southern New Jersey,…
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Lunate longhorn-cuckoo bee (Triepeolus lunatus)
Apidae > Triepeolus > Triepeolus lunatus Lunate longhorn-cuckoo (Triepeolus lunatus) is a distinctive cuckoo bee of agricultural fields, gardens, and cities. It is active in summer, well-timed to co-occur with its presumed eucerine host Melissodes bimaculatus. T. lunatus has a preference for nectar from summer-blooming Asteraceae in the garden like black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia) and coneflowers…
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Epeolus
Epeolus are cleptoparasites of cellophane bees (Colletes spp.). They are typically orange-red and black, with cream-white or silvery bands on the abdomen. Females sneak into nests while the host female is out foraging and lay an egg in the wall of a brood cell or in between the double-layered cell lining. Epeolus eggs hatch into…
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Nomada
Nomada are red, black, and yellow wasp-like bees, most of which are cleptoparasites of mining bees Andrena. As cleptoparasites, Nomada are tied to their hosts, and so most species occur in spring when Andrena diversity is at its peak. You are likely to encounter Nomada nectaring on flowers in your garden, hovering in warm, sunny…
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Triepeolus
Some of our meanest-looking bees, Triepeolus are cleptoparasites of longhorn bees (Eucerini). They are typically distinctly banded in white, black, and red, relatively hairless and found in the summer months when eucerines are active. Triepeolus females lay eggs in the open brood cells of longhorn bees. The eggs hatch into first instar larvae that kill…
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Coelioxys
Coelioxys are nest parasites of Megachile and, like their hosts, can be found in a variety of fairly open habitats from late spring through fall. Some of the dozen or so species found in our area are common garden bees, while a few are exceedingly rare. Female Coelioxys use their pointed abdomens to slice open…
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Stelis
Stelis is a genus of megachilid cleptoparasites, laying eggs in the nests of Megachile, Osmia, Hoplitis, Heriades, and Trachusa. They are stocky but elongate, evenly wide down the length of their bodies, and often with relatively sparse hairs. With the exception of one relatively widespread species, Stelis are generally not often encountered. Stelis are shaped…