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 Xanthosarus (Megachile Subgenus Xanthosarus) » Western Leafcutter Bee (Megachile perihirta) Photo#1252170 | | | Copyright © 2016 R. Berg | |
Leafcutter bee: egg packets - Megachile perihirta Alameda County, California, USA July 5, 2016 Size: About 1.7 cm avg. length
Last night, some creature, probably the skunk that's been digging up the yard, disturbed a recently completed leafcutter-bee nest in soil between roots of a pelargonium. The ovipositing female had used circles cut from rose leaves to form the cells. In the disturbed soil, I found three cells that looked intact and might contain viable embryos. The leaf packet at the left end of the row was empty; the object at the right end was a solid, cohesive, brown mass, not fully wrapped.
After photographing, I inserted the rightmost object into the empty packet and buried all four packets in a shallow dish of sandy soil. I moistened the surface and put the dish in an outdoor terrarium, safe from digging mammals.
Images of this individual: tag all Contributed by R. Berg on 5 July, 2016 - 10:20pm Last updated 3 September, 2016 - 11:02pm |