Habropoda cineraria
(Smith, 1879)
Habropoda cineraria is a solitary digger bee in the Apidae, native to western North America. Like other members of the Habropoda, it nests in sandy soils and exhibits specialized ecological relationships with nest . The has been documented in coastal and interior western , though detailed biological studies specific to this species remain limited compared to better-known such as H. miserabilis and H. pallida.
Pronunciation
How to pronounce Habropoda cineraria: /hæbroʊˈpoʊdə sɪnəˈrɛəriə/
These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.
Images
Distribution
Western North America. Specific locality records are sparse in the provided sources, though the Habropoda is broadly distributed across coastal dunes and desert regions of the western United States.
Similar Taxa
- Habropoda miserabilisBoth are western North American digger bees with similar nesting in sandy substrates; H. miserabilis has been extensively studied for its chemical and interactions, while H. cineraria remains less documented
- Habropoda pallidaShares -level traits including solitary ground-nesting habit and association with blister beetle ; H. pallida is the primary of Meloe franciscanus in the Mojave Desert
Sources and further reading
- BugGuide
- GBIF taxonomy match
- iNaturalist taxon
- NCBI Taxonomy
- Catalogue of Life
- A Silver Digger Bee in Flight at Bodega Head | Bug Squad
- Those Incredible Digger Bees and Their Nest Parasites | Bug Squad
- Why Silver Digger Bees Are Like Gold | Bug Squad
- The Amazing Bee-Parasite Research of Leslie Saul-Gershenz | Bug Squad
- Bees, Parasites and Maybe the End? | Bug Squad
- What's in a Name? Leslie Saul-Gershenz and Norm Gershenz | Bug Squad