Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada

Species Halictus rubicundus - Orange-legged Furrow Bee

Halictus rubicundus - female Halictus rubicundus - female Bee - Halictus - Halictus rubicundus - female Male Halictid? - Halictus rubicundus - male 6012550 bee - Halictus rubicundus - male Bee - Halictus rubicundus - 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 Halictidae (Sweat, Furrow, Nomiine, and Short-faced Bees)
Subfamily Halictinae (Sweat and Furrow Bees)
Tribe Halictini
Genus Halictus (Furrow Bees)
No Taxon (Subgenus Halictus sensu lato)
Species rubicundus (Orange-legged Furrow Bee)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Apis rubicunda Christ, 1791; Halictus nidulans Walckenaer, 1817; Halictus lerouxii Lepeletier, 1841; Halictus quadrifasciatus Smith, 1870; Halictus lerouxii var. ruborum Cockerell, 1898; Halictus rubicundus var. laticinctus Blüthgen, 1923; Halictus rubicundus var. mongolensis Blüthgen, 1936; Halictus lupinelli Cockerell, 1936; Halictus (Protohalictus) frater Pesenko, 1984
Explanation of Names
Halictus (Protohalictus) rubicundus (Christ, 1791)
Size
Female: Length 10-11mm(1)
Male: Length 10-11mm(1)
Identification
Similar to H. ligatus but with a narrower head.
Range
Holarctic, ranging throughout Canada and the United States, south to Florida.
Season
March to September.
Food
Visits flowers from several families. The Hosts section on its Discover Life species page lists known floral associations based on specimen records and images.
Remarks
One single female constructs a nest in the ground with 5-7 cells. In certain cases there may be workers or reproductives or a combination of both depending on climatic conditions.
Print References
Soucy (2002) --Nesting biology/behavior
Works Cited
1.Bees of the eastern United States
Mitchell T.B. 1962. Tech. Bull. (NC Agric. Exp. Sta.): No. 141 (538 pp.), 1960; and No. 152 (557 pp.).