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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) » Mason bees and relatives (Osmiini) » Mason Bees (Osmia) » Subgenus Osmia (Osmia Subgenus Osmia) » Hornfaced Bee (Osmia cornifrons)

Species Osmia cornifrons - Hornfaced Bee

Representative Images

mining bee? - Osmia cornifrons - female Mating pair Osmia cornifrons - Osmia cornifrons Osmia cornifrons female - Osmia cornifrons - female Solitary Bee in Bee Home, Newark DE - Osmia cornifrons - male - female Osmia cornifrons - male Mason bee perspectives - Osmia cornifrons - male 3 different individuals, same species? contemporaneous Basking Bees #3 - Osmia cornifrons Bee - Osmia cornifrons - female

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)
No Taxon (Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps)
No Taxon (Apoidea (clade Anthophila) - Bees)
Family Megachilidae (Leafcutter, Mason, and Resin Bees, and allies)
Subfamily Megachilinae (Leafcutter, Resin, Mortar, Sharptail, Mason, and Woolcarder bees and relatives)
Tribe Osmiini (Mason bees and relatives)
Genus Osmia (Mason Bees)
No Taxon (Subgenus Osmia)
Species cornifrons (Hornfaced Bee)

Other Common Names

Hornfaced mason bee
Japanese hornfaced bee

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Osmia cornifrons (Radoszkowski)
Orig. Comb: Chalicodoma cornifrons Radoszkowski 1887

Range

Native to East Asia. Deliberately introduced to eastern North America by USDA scientists where now widely distributed.
Discover Life Global Map

Season

mostly: Mar-May (BG data)

Food

The Hosts section on its Discover Life species page lists known floral associations based on specimen records and images.

Remarks

They are used in Japan to pollinate apple trees and were deliberately introduced to the United States by USDA scientists in the 1970s for the same purpose, even though the very similar native species Osmia lignaria occurs here and can be managed in a similar way.
Osmia cornifrons is now widely established and numerous in the Eastern United States.
More information including creating Propagation blocks and Updated Recommendations for Growers with Osmia cornifrons.
This is not a native pollinator.

Print References

Matthew I. McKinney and Yong-Lak Park. 2012. Nesting Activity and Behavior of Osmia cornifrons (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) Elucidated Using Videography. Psyche, Article ID 814097, 7 pages.

Internet References

Discover Life
Osmia cornifrons image
Basic biology and management of the Japanese hornfaced bee - MAAREC
Wikipedia
Psyche, a Journal of Entomology. Nesting Activity and Behavior of Osmia cornifrons (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) Elucidated Using Videography
Contributed by Ted Kropiewnicki on 26 March, 2008 - 4:49pm
Additional contributions by Beatriz Moisset, Mike Quinn, John S. Ascher, hg, PaleoJon
Last updated 16 July, 2021 - 8:51pm

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