( Hylaeus sp. )
PHOTO COMMENT
(Fabricius ,1793 )
LOCATION DETAILS
RECOGNITION
BIOLOGY
CREDITS
Eddie Dunbar
Insect Sciences Museum of California
References
| Masked Bee ( Hylaeus sp. ) | |
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PHOTO COMMENT | |
| Hylaeus lack external pollen transporting structures (e.g. scopa) and store pollen and nectar internally in a honey stomach. | |
| IDENTIFICATION | |
| Identification: | Hylaeus sp. (Fabricius ,1793 ) |
| Common Name: | Masked Bee |
| Life Stage: | (A) adult |
| PHYLOGENY | |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Superorder: | Holometabola |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Suborder: | Apocrita |
| Family: | Colletidae |
| Subfamily: | Hylaeinae |
| Genus: | Hylaeus |
| Taxon Code: | HYM00458 |
| ITIS/TSN: | 154346 |
LOCATION DETAILS | |
| Location Name | |
| Albany Bulb, 1 Buchanan St, Albany | |
| County: | Alameda County |
| ECI Site#: | CA01020000 |
RECOGNITION | |
| Description | |
| These are small, black and yellow/white wasp-like bee species. The resemblance to wasps is enhanced by the absence of ventral abdominal hairs used to collect pollen, a feature typical among bees. Hylaeus often have the clypeus (plate above the labium) yellow to which it owes its name masked bee. | |
| Diversity | |
| 51 spp. in 8 subgenera in North America, 739 spp. in 52 subgenera worldwide. | |
BIOLOGY | |
| Nesting Preferences | |
| Like most colletids, the liquid provisions are sealed inside a membranous cellophane-like cell lining; nests are typically in dead twigs or plant stems, or other similarly small natural cavities, rather than constructing or excavating their own nests as in many other bees. | |
| Distribution | |
| Worldwide | |
| Diversity | |
| 51 spp. in 8 subgenera in North America, 739 spp. in 52 subgenera worldwide. | |
CREDITS | |
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Photographer Eddie Dunbar Insect Sciences Museum of California | |
References | |
| Genus Hylaeus - Masked Bees. (http://bugguide.net/node/view/26461). Accessed March 12, 2016. . | |
| ITIS. | |
| Wikipedia | |
