The

bee Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyly, monophyletic lineage within the ...

genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the

Holarctic The Holarctic realm is a biogeographic realm that comprises the majority of habitats found throughout the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. It corresponds to the floristic Boreal Kingdom. It includes both the Nearctic zoogeographical region ...

and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

n biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, though many nest in large aggregations. Nearly all species make nests in the soil, either in banks or in flat ground; the larvae develop in cells with waterproof linings and do not spin cocoons. Males commonly have pale white or yellow facial markings, and/or peculiarly modified leg armature and hairs. ''Anthophora'' individuals can be distinguished from the very similar genus ''

Amegilla ''Amegilla'' is a large genus of bees in the tribe Anthophorini. Several species have blue metallic bands on the abdomen, and are referred to as "blue-banded bees" and "digger bees". One of their names in english, "digger bees" is given to them ...

'' by the possession of an

arolium The arthropod leg is a form of jointed appendage of arthropods, usually used for walking. Many of the terms used for arthropod leg segments (called podomeres) are of Latin origin, and may be confused with terms for bones: ''coxa'' (meaning hip (anat ...

between the tarsal claws. Species include: *''

Anthophora bimaculata ''Anthophora bimaculata'' (also called green-eyed flower bee) is a species of bees. Description They are 8-9 mm long. The male has narrow light tergite bandages, yellow face and normally hairy middle legs clearly visible in the field. The fema ...

'' *''

Anthophora curta The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *''

Anthophora dispar ''Anthophora dispar'' is a species of bee belonging to the family Apidae subfamily Apinae tribus Anthophorini. Description The adults of these long-tongued bees grow up to long and can be encountered from early Spring, feeding and collecting ...

'' *''

Anthophora edwardsii The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *''

Anthophora fedorica ''Anthophora fedorica'' is a species of anthophorine bee in the family Apidae Apidae is the largest family within the superfamily Apoidea, containing at least 5700 species of bees. The family includes some of the most commonly seen bees, incl ...

'' *''

Anthophora flexipes The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *''

Anthophora urbana The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *''

Anthophora furcata The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *'' Anthophora plumipes'' *''

Anthophora pueblo The bee genus ''Anthophora'' is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, th ...

'' *''

Anthophora retusa ''Anthophora retusa'', the potter flower bee, is a species of solitary digger bee. Distribution ''A. retusa'' is generally found in Western Europe and southern Sweden. In the United Kingdom, ''A. retusa'' is thought to be limited to five sites, ...

References

C. D. Michener Charles Duncan Michener (September 22, 1918 – November 1, 2015) was an American entomologist born in Pasadena, California. He was a leading expert on bees, his ''magnum opus'' being ''The Bees of the World'' published in 2000. __TOC__ Biogra ...

(2000) ''The Bees of the World'', Johns Hopkins University Press.

External links

Discover Life, Anthophora Identification Guide Discover Life, List of SpeciesDiscover Life, Worldwide Species Map
on the UF /

IFAS IFAS may refer: * Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences * Integrated Fixed-Film Activated Sludge, a sewage treatment process * International French adjectival system In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, clim ...

Featured Creatures Web site Apinae Bee genera Taxa named by Pierre André Latreille {{Apinae-stub

See also

References

External links