Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Home
» Guide »
Arthropods (Arthropoda)
»
Hexapods (Hexapoda)
»
Insects (Insecta)
»
Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera)
»
Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps
»
Apoidea (clade Anthophila) - Bees
»
Leafcutter, Mason, and Resin Bees, and allies (Megachilidae)
»
Leafcutter, Resin, Mortar, Sharptail, Mason, and Woolcarder bees and relatives (Megachilinae)
»
Leafcutter, Resin, Mortar, and Sharptail bees (Megachilini)
»
Leafcutter and Resin Bees (Megachile)
»
Subgenus Pseudocentron (Megachile Subgenus Pseudocentron)
»
Megachile pruina
»
Megachile pruina nigropinguis
Photo#272722
Copyright © 2009
Ron M.
Resin Bee -
Megachile pruina
-
Kenner, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, USA
May 5, 2009
Megachile?
This guy never really stopped. It would land on a flower and take off again immediately.
Images of this individual:
tag all
Contributed by
Ron M.
on 6 May, 2009 - 4:29am
Last updated 13 December, 2009 - 11:54am
Moved
Moved from
Leaf-cutting and Resin Bees
.
…
John S. Ascher
, 13 December, 2009 - 11:54am
Megachile female
leaf-cutter
I believe this is Megachile (Pseudocentron) pruina.
Note the description of var. pinguis, described from coastal Texas (Galvesten), in Mitchell, 1937, Trans. Amer. Ent. Soc. 63:68.
Variety pinguis, treated as a subspecies in the Hurd (1979) Red Catalog, has, "Pubescence of face, cheeks, pleura, propodeum, legs and abdomen basally, fuscous" as opposed to largely white in typical pruina according to the key on p. 64.
If this ID is correct it is apparently a first record of the species from Louisiana and the first record of the subspecies from outside Texas.
I am not aware of other Megachile in the region with this hair pattern, in particular the extensively fuscous puescence. Comments welcome!
…
John S. Ascher
, 6 May, 2009 - 9:56am