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Bees
- Latin Name: Apis mellifera scutellata
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: Africanized Honey Bee
- Other Names: Killer bee
Origin:
The AHB originated in Africa and came to the U.S. from South America.
Biology:
There are about 28 subspecies or geographic races of the “honeybee”, Apis mellifera, which originated in Africa and migrated northward into Europe and Asia. This race is possibly the most aggressive of them, but all races can interbreed with one another. The AHB was deliberately imported into South America in 1957, but then moved on its own steadily northward, eventually entering Texas in the early 1990’s. It has since expanded in the U.S. and now is found from southern California to Florida. Workers are extremely defensive of their colony and will rush out by the thousands to attack a perceived intruder.
- Latin Name: Bombus sp.
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: Bumble Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
There are many species of bumble bees that are native to North America.
Biology:
These are social bees that establish small colonies, using many kinds of available cavities. Nests may be in the ground, in hollow logs or trees, in walls or structures, or in other cavities they can find. Nests do not survive the winter months, but instead each colony is begun in the spring by a fertilized, hibernating queen. Colonies grow to a few hundred workers, sometimes more, by the end of the summer. Males and new queens are produced, mating takes place, and the males, the old queen, and all the workers die. The nest consists of wax “honey pots” that are filled with nectar, and adjacent cells that contain the eggs and larvae. The larvae
- Latin Name: Anthophoridae & Andrenidae
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: Digger or Mining Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
These are important native bees in North America.
Biology:
This is a very large family of bees, with over 1,200 species in North America. Most are small to medium sized and most nest in burrows in the soil, the female digging a vertical tunnel with small chambers off to the side of it. There often will be many females actively digging in one area, and the sight of hundreds of little bees swirling around over the surface may frighten homeowners. However, while the females may be “capable” of inflicting a very minor sting, these are solitary bees and the threat of stinging is extremely low. It often will be the stingless males that are seen flying around so rapidly over the soil. The females
- Latin Name: Xylocopa virginica
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: Eastern Carpenter Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
These are native insects in North America.
Biology:
Carpenter bees are solitary bees that get their common name from their habit of boring chambers in solid wood in order to create living quarters for their larvae. Softer woods such as redwood may be preferred, and the wood is not eaten, but instead is reduced to sawdust (“frass”) which is ejected from the tunnels. The female bee does the excavating, and several females may be working in the same section of wood and using the same entrance hole, but creating separate galleries. Males and females over-winter in old galleries and emerge in the spring to mate. They will both die before the end of the summer and it is their offspring which begin the next
- Latin Name: Apis mellifera
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: European Honey Bee
- Other Names: Western honey bee, subspecies include Italian, German, and Africanized honey bees
Origin:
A native of Europe and Asia, the honeybee was introduced to the United States for honey production and pollination of crops. The Africanized honeybee (a.k.a. “killer bee”) evolved in Africa, was introduced to South America, and found its way north into the U.S.
Biology:
Honeybees are social bees, with colonies composed of a single Queen and many hundreds of workers. New colonies are begun when additional Queens are produced in a colony and all but one leave, each newly fertilized Queen taking a consort of workers with her. Males (drones) are produced only for mating with these new queens, and the males then die. Only the females
- Latin Name: Megachilidae
- Latin Family Name: Megachilidae
- Common Name: Leafcutting Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
A number of native species of these beneficial bees occur throughout North America.
Biology:
Leaf-cutting bees are solitary bees that create small tubes, made from circular sections of leaves, for their larvae to live in. Evidence of the bees will be leaves on plants with numerous circular sections cut from their margins, as well as the small tubes tucked into many holes or crevices. They are excellent pollinators, their activity on plants does not harm the plant, and they are unlikely to sting without serious provocation. Holes in wood siding or stucco that contain the leaf tubes were not created by the bee, but already were present and discovered by the bee in its search for suitable places for its larvae. Occasionally
- Latin Name: Colletidae
- Latin Family Name: Colletidae
- Common Name: Plasterer Bee
- Other Names: Yellow-faced Bees
Origin:
These are important native bees in North America.
Biology:
This is a fairly small family of bees that are similar in appearance and habits to the Halictidae, or sweat bees. There are about 160 species in North America. The females dig a vertical tunnel downward in the soil with small chambers off to the side of this main tunnel. In this chamber she places a food supply of pollen and nectar and then a single egg, and the larva develops within its chamber. A small mound of soil is often present at the surface where the main tunnel begins. While the females may be “capable” of inflicting a very minor sting, these are solitary bees and the threat of stinging is extremely low. They are native bees and
- Latin Name: Halictidae
- Latin Family Name: Halictidae
- Common Name: Sweat Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
These are important native bees in North America.
Biology:
This family of highly beneficial bees consists of only solitary bees. They do not form colonies of workers and a queen, but instead the female works alone following mating to create a nest area for her offspring, usually in small chambers in the soil. She then provisions each chamber with pollen and nectar for the single egg in that chamber. A few species in the family are referred to as “cleptoparasites” in that the female deposits her eggs in chambers already provisioned with food and eggs by other species and the larva consumes that egg and then the food meant for the other species of bee. These bees are important pollinators, and while they are “capable”
- Latin Name: Xylocopa varipuncta
- Latin Family Name: Apidae
- Common Name: Valley Carpenter Bee
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
These are native insects in North America and this species is found from Texas to California and south into Mexico.
Biology:
Carpenter bees are solitary bees that get their common name from their habit of boring chambers in solid wood in order to create living quarters for their larvae. Softer woods such as redwood may be preferred, and the wood is not eaten, but instead is reduced to sawdust (“frass”) which is ejected from the tunnels. The female bee does the excavating, and several females may be working in the same section of wood and using the same entrance hole, but creating separate galleries. Males and females over-winter in old galleries and emerge in the spring to mate. They will both die before