This is very significant and publishable range extension as it the first record of this species for California. I've seen some records from elsewhere in western North America, including BugGuide photos, but these have not been published in print yet. A very interesting find but also troubling as it shows how quickly invasive bees spread acorss the continent.

Nice find. Yes, sometime those blurry photos pay off. Thanks for having the guts to post them...and without apology. We need more of this.

I sort of went of on a lens tangent, but let me see if we have the same outlook on posting photographs. I post them for more than one reason. Sometimes I thing the photos are good enough that others might enjoy seeing them, and sometimes I am more interested if someone can identify something that is new to me. On those Occasions the photos only have to be good enough for someone to identify...And, of course, even so-so pictures provide data. I have no problem with most of my pictures being frassed. So...why not just post them, and maybe learn something.

While you're certainly not in their number, I'm seeing recent evidence of many people who are afraid to post what I generously call less-than-perfect images. There are also those who post and apologize. I hope they'll see what you've done here and gain some courage and confidence.