Category: Family page
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Melittidae
Melittids are uncommon bees, not often seen in suburban or developed areas. In the northeast, melittids are ground-nesting and specialized on particular flowers. Macropis are typically found in close association with their oil-rich host plant Lysimachia spp. and nectar plants like dogbane Apocynum spp. The two most common Melitta species (which are not very common…
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Megachilidae
Megachilids are mostly active in summer and fall, and they hold the distinction as the only bee family in which females carry pollen in a thick brush of hairs beneath the abdomen. In addition, megachilids exhibit a staggering array of nesting strategies, including both above- and below-ground nests, free-standing nests carefully molded out of tree…
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Colletidae
Colletids are a diverse group of bees united by their nest building behavior: they line their nests with a thin, waterproof lining akin to cellophane, polyester, or silk. Otherwise, the two genera of colletids in the northeast–Colletes and Hylaeus–could not be more different. Colletes are about 3/4 the size of a honey bee, hairy, have…
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Halictidae
The “sweat bees.” Members of this large group of bees are active throughout the year, and are generally black, or metallic green or blue. Halictids are best known for dazzling array of social structures, ranging from solitary nests led by a single female to eusociality with division of labor among queens and many female workers.…
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Apidae
Members of Apidae include out best known and most conspicuous bees, including honey bees Apis mellifera, bumble bees Bombus, and large carpenter bees Xylocopa. Some females in this group carry pollen in flattened sections of their hind legs called corbiculae. Many apids are excellent pollinators of crops, in part due to their ability to sonicate,…
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Andrenidae
A large group of ground-nesting bees, ranging in size from tiny fairy bees Perdita to large, robust mining bees Andrena. Most members of this family in the northeast are spring-active, with some species active in fall that specialize on goldenrods and asters, and the fewest species active in summer.