#digger bee

[onenicebugperday]

Pacific digger bee, Anthophora pacifica, Apidae

As the name suggests, digger bees make nests in the soil where larvae develop in cells. They are solitary, though they may nest in large aggregations.

Photographed in Washington state by eebee

[miyrumiyru]

honey i'm home! (literally butt covered by full of pollen)

[ghostoffuturespast]

18 April 2025 - Friday Field Notes

Spring blooms. Of course, it's supposed to snow this weekend, so we'll see if the flowers on the trees make it. Amelanchier alnifolia - Serviceberry (top) and Pyrus sp. - Pear (bottom)

The low growing plants are more used to the flux in temperatures. Viola nuttallii - Nuttall's Violet (left) and, I think, Helianthus maximiliani - Maximilian's Sunflower. (Continuing the tradition of naming plants and animals after a bunch of white guys who "discovered" them. If anyone knows any OG names, I'm down to hear them.)

Fun fact: Honey Bees are an introduced species in North America. The majority of native Bees in North America are typically solitary, don't live in hives, and have a bunch of different nesting strategies. As to whether or not this is actually a Digger Bee nest, I can't say, it could be a number of other insect species too, but I feel pretty honored that this bug decided to raise the next generation in one of the native plant garden beds.

Antilocapra americana - Pronghorn. What're you all staring at?

I also did get to live out my dreams of being a Beaver! One of the Beaver dam analogs we installed. Still needs a lot of work and will probably need upkeep throughout the season. Those rodents are definitely better engineers than we are, let me tell you. It was a lot of work but hellaciously fun. Spent most the morning slinging mud around. Walking in the mud is no joke though, my feet kept getting stuck and I fell over at one point trying to rearrange sticks.

[nutnoce]

She was too busy for an interview, this is just what she had to say to herself.

Digger Bee: I’ll just live here and if I work 168 hours a week and never eat it’ll be fine.

[bone-free-as-the-wind]

Found this nice thick boy with yellow eyes crawling around. First time seeing a desert Digger Bee.

(photos by S Suzuki-Martinez)

[oddman-the-oldman]

Anthophora pacifica Pacific Digger Bee 

[usgsbiml]

A Japanese Bee in America.   This is Anthophora villosula.  An Anthophora (Digger Bee) that was introduced in the 80s to Eastern U.S. for agricultural purposes, but its potential was never realized.  

Now, unfortunately, it is a common and spreading alien species dispersing from its original location in the Washington D.C. area and will likely spread to occupy much of the country at some point.  It can be found nesting in the dry dirt under decks, in upturned root masses and in the earthen plaster of strawbale houses such as our bee biologist's Sam Droege's, where it nests by the hundreds.  It does favor the "alien" plant community over the natives so it will be another interesting story to watch how it integrates and competes with the local bee fauna.  

Photographs by Brooke Alexander.

All original pictures completely public domain and available at our Flickr site: https://www.flickr.com/photos/usgsbiml/

Photography Information: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-_yvIsucOY

Follow us on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/usgsbiml/

Download our free field guide to the genera of bees:http://bio2.elmira.edu/fieldbio/beesofmarylandbookversion1.pdf

Public Bee Servant, sam droege

[toddjdreyer]

First sighting of a Mourning Cloak / Nymphalis antiopa for 2017 and a female Digger Bee guarding the front door.