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Leafcutting Bees
Megachilidae is a cosmopolitan family of mostly solitary bees. Both that their pollen-carrying structure (called a ''scopa'') is restricted to the ventral surface of the abdomen (rather than mostly or exclusively on the hind legs as in other bee families), and their typically elongated labrum is characteristic of this family. C. D. Michener (2007) ''The Bees of the World'', 2nd Edition, pg. 122, Johns Hopkins University Press. Megachilid genera are most commonly known as mason bees and leafcutter bees, reflecting the materials from which they build their nest cells (soil or leaves, respectively); a few collect plant or animal hairs and fibers, and are called carder bees, while others use plant resins in nest construction and are correspondingly called resin bees. All species feed on nectar and pollen, but a few are kleptoparasites (informally called "cuckoo bees"), feeding on pollen collected by other megachilid bees. Parasitic species do not possess scopae. The motion of Meg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', "dawn") and (''kainós'', "new") and refers to the "dawn" of modern ('new') fauna that appeared during the epoch. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Paleocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the Eocene is marked by a brief period in which the concentration of the carbon isotope 13C in the atmosphere was exceptionally low in comparison with the more common isotope 12C. The end is set at a major extinction event called the ''Grande Coupure'' (the "Great Break" in continuity) or the Eocene–Oligocene extinction event, which may be related to the impact of one or more large bolides in Siberia and in what is now Chesapeake Bay. As with other geologic periods, the strata that define the start and end of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stelis (bee)
''Stelis'' is a genus of kleptoparasitic bees in the family Megachilidae Megachilidae is a cosmopolitan family of mostly solitary bees. Both that their pollen-carrying structure (called a ''scopa'') is restricted to the ventral surface of the abdomen (rather than mostly or exclusively on the hind legs as in other b .... There are at least 100 described species in ''Stelis''. Description One study of the species '' Stelis ater'' found they differed a bit from other thieving bees by being hospicidal (host-killing) at all larval stages, and neither it nor its host larva move much, so it is simply a matter of chance when its growth brings it into contact with the host rather than with just the provisions. This is in contrast to other kleptoparasitic bees which usually have their more mobile first instar larva kill the host larva. See also * List of Stelis species References Further reading * * * * * * External links * Megachilidae Bee genera {{Mega ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean-Henri Fabre
Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre (21 December 1823 – 11 October 1915) was a French naturalist, entomologist, and author known for the lively style of his popular books on the lives of insects. Biography Fabre was born on 21 December 1823 in Saint-Léons in Aveyron, France. Fabre was largely an autodidact, owing to the poverty of his family. Nevertheless, he acquired a primary teaching certificate at the young age of 19 and began teaching in Carpentras whilst pursuing further studies. In 1849, he was appointed to a teaching post in Ajaccio (Corsica), then in 1853 moved on to the lycée in Avignon. Fabre was a popular teacher, physicist, chemist and botanist. However, he is probably best known for his findings in the field of entomology, the study of insects, and is considered by many to be the father of modern entomology. Much of his enduring popularity is due to his marvellous teaching ability and his manner of writing about the lives of insects in biographical form, which he pref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive purpose. A fruit garden is generally synonymous with an orchard, although it is set on a smaller non-commercial scale and may emphasize berry shrubs in preference to fruit trees. Most temperate-zone orchards are laid out in a regular grid, with a grazed or mown grass or bare soil base that makes maintenance and fruit gathering easy. Most modern commercial orchards are planted for a single variety of fruit. While the importance of introducing biodiversity is recognized in forest plantations, it would seem to be beneficial to introduce some genetic diversity in orchard plantations as well by interspersing other trees through the orchard. Genetic diversity in an orchard would p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osmia Lignaria
''Osmia lignaria'', commonly known as the orchard mason bee or blue orchard bee, is a megachilid bee that makes nests in reeds and natural holes, creating individual cells for its brood that are separated by mud dividers. Unlike carpenter bees, it cannot drill holes in wood. ''O. lignaria'' is a common species used for early spring fruit bloom in Canada and the United States, though a number of other ''Osmia'' species are cultured for use in pollination. Native origin ''O. lignaria'' is among 4000 native bee species of North America, and its species is divided by the Rocky Mountains into two subspecies, ''O. l. propinqua'' (western subspecies) and ''O. l. lignaria'' (eastern subspecies). The majority of research has been conducted in western orchards on the western subspecies. Efforts at establishing them outside their native range have met with mixed results. Researchers in one eastern study (Virginia / North Carolina) using the eastern ''O. l. lignaria'' found them to prefer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alfalfa Leafcutter Bee
''Megachile rotundata'', the alfalfa leafcutting bee, is a European bee that has been introduced to various regions around the world. As a solitary bee species, it does not build colonies or store honey, but is a very efficient pollinator of alfalfa, carrots, other vegetables, and some fruits. Because of this, farmers often use ''M. rotundata'' as a pollination aid by distributing ''M. rotundata'' prepupae around their crops. Each female constructs and provisions her own nest, which is built in old trees or log tunnels. Being a leafcutter bee, these nests are lined with cut leaves. These bees feed on pollen and nectar and display sexual dimorphism. This species has been known to bite and sting, but it poses no overall danger unless it is threatened or harmed, and its sting has been described as half as painful as a honey bee's. Taxonomy and phylogeny ''M. rotundata'' is a member of the subfamily Megachilinae, which includes more than 4,000 bee species; this currently makes this ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pollination Management
Pollination management is the horticultural practices that accomplish or enhance pollination of a crop, to improve yield or quality, by understanding of the particular crop's pollination needs, and by knowledgeable management of pollenizers, pollinators, and pollination conditions. While people think first of the European honey bee when pollination comes up, in fact there are many different means of pollination management that are used, both other insects and other mechanisms. There are other insects commercially available that are more efficient, like the blue orchard bee for fruit and nut trees, local bumblebees better specialized for some other crops, hand pollination that is essential for production of hybrid seeds and some greenhouse situations, and even pollination machines. Pollinator decline With the decline of both wild and domestic pollinator populations, pollination management is becoming an increasingly important part of horticulture. Factors that cause the lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chalicodoma
''Chalicodoma'' is a subgenus of the bee genus ''Megachile'' in the family Megachilidae. Species * '' Megachile albocristata'' * ''Megachile albonotata'' * '' Megachile alborufa'' * '' Megachile apennina'' * '' Megachile atrocastanea'' * '' Megachile baetica'' * '' Megachile brunissima'' * ''Megachile canescens'' * '' Megachile cressa'' * ''Megachile creutzburgi'' * '' Megachile desertorum'' * '' Megachile difficilis'' * ''Megachile duala'' * '' Megachile formosa'' * '' Megachile fuerteventurae'' * '' Megachile fulvohirta'' * ''Megachile gessorum'' * '' Megachile heinii'' * ''Megachile hirsuta'' * ''Megachile hungarica'' * ''Megachile imperialis'' * ''Megachile incerta'' * '' Megachile insolita'' * ''Megachile jeanneli The genus ''Megachile'' is a cosmopolitan group of solitary bees, often called leafcutter bees or leafcutting bees; it also includes the called resin bees and mortar bees. While other genera within the family Megachilidae may chew leaves or p ...'' * '' Meg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hoplitis
''Hoplitis'' is a genus of bees in the family Megachilidae. There are more than 380 described species in ''Hoplitis''. See also * List of Hoplitis species This is a list of 385 species in ''Hoplitis'', a genus of leafcutter, mason, and resin bees in the family Megachilidae. ''Hoplitis'' species * '' Hoplitis abbreviata'' (Morawitz, 1875) * '' Hoplitis abnormis'' van der Zanden, 1992 * '' Hoplitis ... References Further reading * * * External links * Megachilidae Bee genera Articles created by Qbugbot {{Megachilidae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anthidium
''Anthidium'' is a genus of bees often called carder or potter bees, who use conifer resin, plant hairs, mud, or a mix of them to build nests. They are in the family Megachilidae which is cosmopolitan in distribution and made up of species that are mostly solitary bees with pollen-carrying scopa that are only located on the ventral surface of the abdomen. Other bee families have the pollen-carrying structures on the hind legs. Typically species of ''Anthidium'' feed their brood on pollen and nectar from plants. ''Anthidium florentinum'' is distinguished from most of its relatives by yellow or brick-red thoracic bands. They fly all summer and make the nests in holes in the ground, walls or trees, with hairs plucked from plants. Most ''Anthidium'' species are leaf-cutting bees who use conifer resin, plant hairs, earth, or a combination of these as material for the nest walls. Their abdominal bands are usually interrupted in the middle. There is no lobe (arolium) between their cla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osmia
Mason bee is a name now commonly used for species of bees in the genus ''Osmia'', of the family Megachilidae. Mason bees are named for their habit of using mud or other "masonry" products in constructing their nests, which are made in naturally occurring gaps such as between cracks in stones or other small dark cavities. When available, some species preferentially use hollow stems or holes in wood made by wood-boring insects. Species of the genus include the orchard mason bee '' O. lignaria'', the blueberry bee '' O. ribifloris'', the hornfaced bee '' O. cornifrons'', and the red mason bee '' O. bicornis''. The former two are native to the Americas, the third to eastern Asia, and the latter to the European continent, although ''O. lignaria'' and ''O. cornifrons'' have been moved from their native ranges for commercial purposes. Over 300 species are found across the Northern Hemisphere. Most occur in temperate habitats within the Palearctic and Nearctic zones, and are active from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
