Who Am I?

Browse below to see some of the insects you might encounter in your garden.

Family: Megachilidae

Genus: Megachile

Common name(s): Leaf-cutting bees

The genus Megachile includes solitary leaf-cutting, mortar, and resin bees. I love these garden visitors. The females have abdomens that are hairy and usually full of pollen, and the males go quietly about their business … mostly. The alfalfa and pugnacious leaf cutting bees like to dive bomb each other and other insects, even the carpenter bees three times their size, while they gather pollen and nectar.

There are many, many species in the genus Megachile (56 subgenera with 1520 recognized species), and many of them cannot be identified to species in the field. I’m sharing a few here that have been positively identified on iNaturalist or that I’m fairly certain of. Seeing the first leaf-cutters in the spring is a highlight in my garden! This past summer, the alfalfa leaf-cutters arrived first, and they were often on the Philadelphia fleabane. One one occasion, I noted movement from behind the petal of a sundrop. In a few seconds, a female leaf-cutter had removed a neat section of the petal, and off she flew to use it in her nest.

Most days that I was out with the camera, I photographed some sort of leaf-cutting bee. I also found some sharptail bees that are parasites of Megachile species (see below). I see this as a really good indicator that the leaf-cutter populations are healthy enough to support parasites.

As I write, it’s November and the garden feels empty. I hope to document even more species next summer.

Shown here on helenium, black-eyed Susan, perennial sunflower, blanket flower, verbena bonariensis, and elecampane.

Pugnacious leaf-cutting bee, Megachile pugnata, female

Flat-tailed leafcutter bee, Megachile mendica, female

Pair of leaf cutting bees, female, possibly Megachile pugnata

Leaf cutter attack or mating attempt, likely Megachile pugnata

Alfalfa leaf-cutting bee, Megachile rotundata, female

Patchwork leafcutter bee, Megachile centuncularis, female

Alfalfa leaf-cutting bee, Megachile rotundata, male

Pugnacious leaf-cutting bee, Megachile pugnata, male (distinguished by feathery hairs on front legs)

European small woolcarder, Pseudoanthidium nanum

Family: Megachilidae

Genus, species: Pseudoanthidium nanum

Common name(s): European small wool carder

My favorite bee, the Pseudoanthidium nanum, is an exotic, newly established old-world bee that was originally discovered in the new world in New Jersey in 2008 and has spread to neighboring states. They frequent Centaurea and and are specialists on plants in the family Asteraceae. Little is known about their nesting behavior, but most species in the genus nest in pre-existing cavities such as stems, wood, galls, or crevices. A checklist of bees in Pennsylvania from the Lopez-Uribe lab indicates that the Pseudoanthidium nanum was not reported in PA before 2020.

Shown here on New England aster, perennial cornflower, and blanket flower.

Family: Apidae

Genus, species: Anthophora villosula

Common name(s): Asian shaggy digger bee

This bee, originally from Japan, is sized between a honey bee and a bumble bee. It was brought to the U.S. as a possible pollinator species for crops. They nest under decks and in the dirt of upturned root masses of trees. Based on where I found them in the spring, I suspect they are nesting under a shed.

This species has become established in the wild but is still uncommon. As noted by an expert on iNat on my observation page, “It has been recorded in the state [Pennsylvania] before, but not very often (most records in the US are from the MD/DC area).”

It’s great to have these exotic bees at Willowdale Farm!

Shown here on Solomon’s seal.

Melissodes trinodis, male

Melissodes trinodis, female

Melissodes trinodis, male

Melissodes trinodis, dar-veined longhorn bee, male

Melissodes trinodis, female

Melissodes trinodis, dark-veined longhorn bee, female

Family: Apidae

Genus, species: Melissodes trinodis

Common name(s): Dark-veined longhorn bee

The dark-veined longhorn bee is a medium-sized, hairy longhorn bee that appears late in the season when its preferred plants are in bloom, and competition from other bee species is reduced. It feeds on nectar and pollen mostly from sunflowers but also from several other species in the Asteraceae family.

Males have light green eyes and long antennae and females have dark blue eyes with thick scopal hairs on their back legs.

Shown here on sunflowers.

Disclaimer. In their field guide, Dorian and McCarthy indicate that is is not possible to differentiate M. trinodis from M. agilis in the field. Having watched these sunflowers all summer, I believe I had both and that the bees shown here are M. triodis. But that’s the opinion of an editor, not an entomologist!

Family: Megachilidae

Genus, species: Coelioxys coturnix

Common name(s): Cuckoo leaf cutting bee or sharptail

The Coelioxys coturnix is a small cuckoo bee that lays its eggs in the nests of other Megachilid bees. The larvae hatch and eat the provisions and the egg/larvae of the host bee.

This bee is non native (from Europe) where it is rather uncommon. It was introduced in the U.S. very recently. Initial identification attributed to John Ascher, 1/1/2010, “This is C. coturnix first collected in the New World by me in Maryland a few years ago and soon after found elsewhere in Maryland…”

In these photos, males were fighting for the best sleeping spot on a dried stem. They attach themselves with their mandibles. The original male won after six attacks from one or multiple opponents. I noted that they returned to these same stems every evening.

Shown here on dried stem of fleabane.

Eristalis arbustorum, European drone fly or plain-faced drone fly

Eristalis transversa, transverse banded drone fly or transverse banded flower fly

Eristalis dimidiata, black-shouldered drone fly

Eristalis tenax, common drone fly

Family: Syrphidae

Genus: Eristalis

Common name(s): Drone flies

Drone flies are thought to resemble male honey bees, which is how they get their name. This appearance gives them some level of protection from predators. They visit many flowers, and since they have several generations each year, they are able to pollinate different plant species throughout the season. Adult flies in the family Syrphidae feed on nectar, and the larvae are often predators of other insects. So they are all around good visitors to the garden.

Drone flies have sucking mouthparts that only enable them to drink fluids, but they can absorb pollen grains along with the nectar. Their stomach juices are able to dissolve some of the outer coating of the pollen and release the proteins inside, which the females need to produce eggs.

Family: Scoliidae

Genus, species: Scolia dubia

Common name(s): two-spotted scoliid wasp or a blue-winged scoliid wasp

The blue-winged wasp gets its name from the bluish reflections on its wings. It is a solitary wasp that is a friend in the garden.

Adults collect nectar from July to September or October and in the process serve as pollinators.

The female burrows into the ground to find grubs, especially those of the green June beetle and possibly the Japanese beetle. She stings the grub and lays an egg on it. The egg hatches, and the larva pupates and overwinters inside the body of the host.

Shown here on mint.

Family: Papilionidae

Genus, species: Papilio glaucus

Common name(s): Eastern tiger swallowtail

The eastern tiger swallowtail is one of the most common butterflies seen in gardens in Pennsylvania. This butterfly is usually solitary and diurnal, meaning it is active during the day. Adults get their food from a wide range of food sources while larvae feed on specific host plants from a variety of families depending on the species. The adults are known to fly high above the ground and can be seen above the tree canopy. Two males pictured.

Shown here on ligularia (yellow) and verbena bonariensis.

Family: Bombyliidae

Genus, species: Villa lateralis

Common name(s): Bee flies

Adults in this family generally feed on nectar and pollen and the larvae are mostly parasitoids or predators of other insects. V. laterails is common in North America. This genus has not been extensively studied, but the V. laterails may favor plants in the Asteraceae family.

Shown here on echinacea.