DESCRIPTION: Approximately 7 - 9mm in length. A regular looking Plasterer Bee with a furry thorax and a banded abdomen. Tergite 1 is hairy, sparsely punctured and shiny. Females have black hairs on top of the thorax and males have tufts of long hairs arising from a protuberance in each corner of sternite 6. BEHAVIOUR: Has a preference for flowers such as Tansy; Yarrow; Common Fleabane and Ox-Eye Daisy. Likes to nest in large aggregations in loosely vegetated areas especially vertical sandy cliffs but will also use mortar joints in brickwork. An important host for the sarcophagid fly (Miltogramma punctata), also the cleptoparasitic bee (Epeolus variegatus). DISTRIBUTION: Scattered throughout southern Britain. HABITAT: A species that easily takes to any flowery habitats including brown field sites, inland and coastal areas as well as gardens and hedgerows. PERIOD: May to September. |
