mmccarthy98's Favorites

1000++ nests over the entire base path on a town ballfield. Photo 1 shows the area around 1st base bag. Photo 2 is a closeup of a portion of this same area. Photo 3 is home plate.

Greater number of nests observed in the clay-colored substrate on the base paths compared with the grey substrate on home plate and the pitcher's mound.

A few individuals in Genus Nomada were observed parasitizing the nests. See observation https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/213534760

Photos show one individual. Photo 3 shows this individual digging a nest. Photo 4 shows a Nomad bee parasitzing a nest ~ 1 cm away. The observation for nomad bee is found here https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/213534760

These observations are from a large nesting aggregation; see https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/213534751

This is a large (15 mm) female Andrena found feeding on farkleberry (Vaccinium arboreum) growing near a wooded area north of Gainesville. The remarkable things about this bee are its size, black wings and intensely orange color. Its legs (except for the coxae and trochanters) are orange-red, and bright orange hairs cover much of the head, thorax and legs. This female was found together with the male bee shown here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/207778469

I have seen this species in three different locations of Alachua County during April 2014. The University of Florida bee key notes that Andrena obscuripennis has been found previously in Alachua County: the Bee Library records specimens at the University of Florida from Alachua Co. dated 1995-1997, and 1949. (See https://library.big-bee.net/portal/collections/list.php?usethes=1&taxa=4966). Bouseman & LaBerge (1978) wrote that Andrena obscuripennis was initially known only from Georgia and North Carolina, but noted that Mitchell (1960) provisionally included New Jersey and Louisiana in its range. The species has since been documented in places as widely dispersed as Mississippi, Missouri and Ontario.

Population was briefly monitored over several weeks while conducting another pollinator study in the habitat. Oak pollen isn't considered nutritious in most literature, but must be useful to some degree. As the Quercus inopina pollen became available, there was stiff competition between females for the best catkins on the tree. Resources are limited at this site, which was xeric scrub.