bees

Common Long-Horned Bee

Common Long-Horned Bee (Melissodes communis)
Female Common long-horned bees build underground burrows where they nest. Males, shown in this photo, use broken stems or parts of plants to sleep at night. In this case, they are using the remains of a blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella).
The bee on the far left can be seen curling his body on top of the stem, almost giving the seed head appearance. Before they sleep, you may observe the bees grooming, sometimes even doing handstands or other impressive movements as they clean all their little legs. Other times you may see them ramming each other to gain access to a branch.
While they may seem aggressive, the males typically are not bothered by the company of humans. This group wasn’t even phased by the camera lens less than a foot from them. Females, while a bit more agitated by human presence, rarely demonstrate aggression.
These busy little bees love a variety of flowering native plants, including and members of the Asteraceae family, dotted horsemint, tropical salvia, beautyberry, and wild coffee.
Do you have a favorite type of native bee? Let us know in the comments and share this post with your friends so they can learn more about this adorable species of native bees.
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Forked Bluecurls

Forked Bluecurls, Trichostema dichotomum, are native to Florida and a member of the mint family. Bees and other pollinators are attracted to their aromatic blue-violet flowers. They are often found in thickets and dry pinelands. Look for blooms in August and September.

Because they propagate easily from seeds, Forked Bluecurls will thrive in your wildflower garden and may need to be controlled to leave room for other wildflowers.

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Southeastern Blueberry Bee

Here’s something to buzz about. These Southern Blueberry Bees (Habropoda laboriosa) use a technique called “buzz pollination,” in which their buzzing allows tightly held pollen on the anthers of rabbiteye blueberries to loosen. These bees are most active in spring and are easily recognized by their large size and loud buzzing. Of course, they don’t just eat blueberry pollen. Here they are on some scarlet milkweed. You can attract these and other native bees by using native flowering plants in your landscaping. 

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Leavenworth’s tickseed

Leavenworth’s tickseed Coreopsis leavenworthii

The Leavenworth’s tickseed is an endemic flower that provides food for several pollinators. It can usually be found in pine flatwoods where the soil is dry but can adapt to other regions. Here we have pictures with a species of fruitfly, Dioxyna picciola, and a Green sweat bee, Agapostemon splendens. Most flowers are produced in spring but flowers can be found year-round. Have you spotted these beauties anywhere around the state?

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Southern Carpenter Bee

What could be nicer than a native pollinator and a native flower? This Southern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa micans) is stopping by flowering pennyroyal (Piloblephis rigida). The carpenter bee is a solitary bee that lives for one year. They nest in the wood of dead trees. Like other pollinators, carpenter bees are important to the survival of many species of plants. Pennyroyal is a member of the mint family and can be found in sunny areas of sandy soil along forest edges. It can be brewed into a tea as well.

 

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