''Chelostoma campanularum'', or the harebell carpenter bee, is a species of hymenopteran 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 ...
.
It is found in Europe and Northern Asia (excluding China) and North America.
The bee is small and black (6-7mm) with a single flight period from mid-June to mid-August. The male has a two-pronged peg on the final segment of the abdomen and the female has snow white pollen collecting hairs on the underside. It is most easily seen on Bellflowers (''
Campanula
''Campanula'' () is one of several genera of flowering plants in the family Campanulaceae commonly known as bellflowers. They take both their common and scientific names from the bell-shaped flowers — ''campanula'' is Latin for "little bell" ...
'' species) and
Sheep's bit.
To collect the pollen the female brushes the hairs on the underside of her abdomen on to the pollen using her back legs and using her front legs and mandibles to grip on to the anthers of the flower. The males can often be found in the same flower. Mating takes place in the flowers.
In order to encourage the bee, naturalists plant a variety of Bellflower species and provide dry reed stems that the bees use as nesting sites.
References
Further reading
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External links
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Megachilidae
Articles created by Qbugbot
Insects described in 1802
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