Gregarious-nesting
Guides
Anthophora abrupta
Abrupt Digger Bee
Anthophora abrupta is a solitary digger bee in the family Apidae, native to North America. It is known for nesting gregariously, where females are attracted to existing nest sites through visual cues and pheromones. The species has been observed using root plates in forested habitats as nesting substrates. Females mate once, while males are capable of multiple matings.
Bembecinus
sand wasp, sand wasps
Bembecinus is a cosmopolitan genus of sand wasps in the family Crabronidae, with approximately 200 described species worldwide. These small to medium-sized wasps are known for their distinctive eye morphology—strongly convergent at the bottom of the face and strongly divergent at the top of the head—and for practicing progressive provisioning of their larvae. Females construct burrows in sandy substrates and hunt leafhoppers to feed their offspring, while males exhibit complex alternative mating tactics including digging for pre-emergent females and patrolling for mates.
Bembecinus floridanus
sand wasp
Bembecinus floridanus is a small sand wasp in the family Crabronidae, first described by Krombein & Willink in 1951. As a member of the genus Bembecinus, it exhibits the characteristic traits of this group: strongly convergent eyes at the bottom of the face and strongly divergent at the top of the head, along with a petiolate or nearly petiolate second submarginal cell in the forewing. The species is found in North America and, like other Bembecinus, is a solitary ground-nesting wasp that provisions its larvae with prey.
Chalybion
blue mud dauber wasps, blue mud-daubers, blue nest-renting wasps
Chalybion is a genus of solitary wasps in the family Sphecidae, commonly known as blue mud dauber or blue nest-renting wasps. The genus comprises approximately 49 described species distributed across North America, Africa, Asia, and Australia. These wasps are characterized by metallic blue to blue-black coloration and are notable for their unique nesting behavior: rather than constructing their own nests, they primarily utilize pre-existing cavities, particularly abandoned mud nests of other wasps such as Sceliphron species. They provision these nests with paralyzed spiders as food for their larvae. Some species, notably Chalybion californicum, are significant predators of medically important spiders including black widows (Latrodectus species).
Colletes validus
Blueberry Cellophane Bee
Colletes validus is a solitary, ground-nesting bee in the family Colletidae, commonly known as the blueberry cellophane bee. It is a specialist pollinator of ericaceous plants, particularly in early spring when Vaccinium species bloom. The species exhibits gregarious nesting behavior in sandy soils and is notable for its distinctive elongated, triangular facial structure.
Diphaglossinae
Diphaglossinae is a subfamily of solitary bees in the family Colletidae, comprising nine genera and over 130 described species. The group is primarily distributed in the New World, with species found in Argentina, Chile, and other regions of South America. Nesting biology has been documented for several species, revealing distinctive architectural patterns including vertical brood cells with curved necks and main tunnels oriented vertically in soil or horizontally in banks. Some species exhibit gregarious nesting behavior, while others forage in dim light conditions.