Andrena

Andrena, commonly called the mining bee, is the largest genus in the family Andrenidae, and is nearly worldwide in distribution, with the notable exceptions of Oceania and South America. With over 1,300 species, it is one of the largest of all bee genera. Species are often brown to black with whitish abdominal hair bands, though other colors are possible, most commonly reddish, but also including metallic blue or green.

Andrena
Temporal range: Late Oligocene–recent
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Andrenidae
Subfamily: Andreninae
Genus: Andrena
Fabricius, 1775
Subgenera
  • A. (Andrena)
  • A. (Euandrena)
  • A. (Margandrena)
  • A. (Melandrena)
  • A. (Micrandrena)
  • A. (Notandrena)
  • A. (Oreomelissa)
  • A. (Plastandrena)
  • A. (Poecilandrena)
  • A. (Simandrena)
  • A. (Ptilandrena)
  • A. (Zonandrena)

Body length commonly ranges between 8 and 17 mm with males smaller and more slender than females, which often show a black triangle (the "pygidial plate") at the abdominal apex. In temperate areas, Andrena bees (both males and females) emerge from the underground cells where their prepupae spend the winter, when the temperature ranges from about 20 °C to 30 °C. They mate, and the females then seek sites for their nest burrows, where they construct small cells containing a ball of pollen mixed with nectar, upon which an egg is laid, before each cell is sealed. Andrena usually prefer sandy soils for a nesting substrate, near or under shrubs to be protected from heat and frost.

Andrena bees can be readily distinguished from most other small bees by the possession of broad velvety areas in between the compound eyes and the antennal bases, called "facial foveae". They also tend to have very long scopal hairs on the hind leg. Naturally, Andrenas prefer to collect pollen from Rosaceae plants however mining bees have recently been observed to shift their preference towards Brassicaceae. The reasoning behind this shift in foraging tactics is related to the diet breadth between these floral families.[1]

Species

Partial list of species:

See comprehensive separate list.

  • A. accepta
  • A. nasonii
  • A. haemorrhoa, Early mining bee, Oxfordshire
  • Andrena Subgenus Gonandrena, dogwood andrena
  • A. nida
  • A. antoinei fossil


References
  1. Wood, Thomas J.; Roberts, Stuart P. M. (2017-11-01). "An assessment of historical and contemporary diet breadth in polylectic Andrena bee species". Biological Conservation. 215: 72–80. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2017.09.009. ISSN 0006-3207.
  2. Dehon, M.; Michez, D.; Nel, A.; Engel, M. S.; De Meulemeester, T. (2014). "Wing Shape of Four New Bee Fossils (Hymenoptera: Anthophila) Provides Insights to Bee Evolution". PLOS ONE. 9 (10): 1–16. Bibcode:2014PLoSO...9j8865D. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0108865. PMC 4212905. PMID 25354170.
  • C. D. Michener (2007) The Bees of the World, 2nd Edition, Johns Hopkins University Press.


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