Vermont Wild Bee Survey's Journal

If you find yourself at a barbecue over the long weekend, look around for the yellow flowers of Evening Primroses (genus Oenothera). These flowers are open in the late afternoon through mid-morning and the only place you are likely to find the Evening Primrose Sweat Bee (Lasioglossum oenotherae). This is one of a few Lasioglossum species identifiable from photos and easiest to find in gardens on cultivated varieties of Oenothera. A variety of bees (and a cool pink moth) visit Oenothera flowers, but the target species is a relatively large Lasioglossum (~8 mm) that is all black, without the metallic sheen of most species.

More details: https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/vtbees/lasioglossum-oenotherae/

If you are growing Tomatillos or Ground-cherries in your garden, you probably aren’t paying much attention to them until the fruit ripens, but you should be! There are four bee species only found on plants in this genus (Physalis). If you don’t have a garden with these plants, you can still get in on the fun. There is a widespread, native species in the genus, but it is often inconspicuous - growing in the understory of weedy fields, particularly in “poor” or sandy soil. If you can locate a good patch of either the cultivated or the wild varieties, you will likely find at least one of the specialist bees. Alternatively, there is a distinctive cuckoo bee that specializes on one of these species and is often easier to find than its host.

Learn more about the 5 Physalis associated bees here: https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/vtbees/physalis/

Native bellflowers are somewhat localized and can be hard to come by in Vermont, but luckily for beewatchers, they are a common ornamental plant that occasionally escapes. There is one Bellflower specialist - the Bellflower Resin Bee (Megachile campanulae) - that appears to be relatively common and widespread in Vermont and is often found in gardens. There is another introduced specialist - the Small Scissor Bee (Chelostoma campanularum) - that has been found as close as Montreal and Cooperstown NY.
Learn more about these species and an associated Cuckoo Bee here: https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/vtbees/bellflower/

They are painful and weedy, but beloved by goldfinches and a variety of native bees. Two specialists are known from VT plus an associated cuckoo bee, all of which are most frequently found in the Champlain Valley where thistles thrive in heavily grazed pastures and around old barn yards. Next time you spot a patch of thistle, spend a few minutes looking for these field-identifiable bees, and help us fill in some gaps in our knowledge of distribution and phenology!

https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/vtbees/thistles/

It's zucchini season! Next time someone drops a shopping bag of 5 lbs zucchinis on your doorstep, ask them if you can come look for bees in their squash patch. Most large gardens will have the Pruinose Squash Bee, a species unlikely to be found elsewhere. This species is a specialist on the large-flowered cucurbits (winter squash, pumpkins, zucchini) and is most active before noon, when the squash flowers start to shrivel. This common species is also host to a relatively rare cleptoparasite, the Squash Longhorn-Cuckoo. Previously only known from a large farm in Burlington, this species was recently found in downtown Essex and a community garden in Waterbury, raising the possibility it is more widespread than previously thought.

See maps, photos and more information about both species here: https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/vtbees/squash/