Mining Bee ♀

Description:

Andrena hattorfiana is an oligolectic species, feeding its young only on pollen of a few species of Dipsacaceae (Knautia arvensis, Scabiosa columbaria, Centaurea species). It is a solitary bee that can be seen easily from up to 5 meters away. It can be encountered from May through August. The adults grow up to 13 - 16 mm long. They have a black-brown body with sparse light hair, while the first and the second abdominal segment are reddish. The females have a pollen basket of curved hairs on the sides of the thorax.

Habitat:

This endangered solitary bee is present in most of Europe and in the Near East. Its is mainly found in Sweden but is threatened in several European countries. The overall population sizes of this bee are small. With the specific conditions in which a nest must be made could have aided in bringing this species closer to being endangered of being extinct.

Notes:

Furthermore this species is endangered as these bees are often infected by a host specific cleptoparasite called Nomada armata which parasitizes a big proportion of brood cells in local populations. Other factors are the competition for pollen by other insects, and habitat loss and fragmentation. But the main reason is the reduced food-plant distribution because of larger farm units and not a lot of traditionally managed meadows. Therefore, Andrena hattorfiana is endangered because of pollen competition, not enough variability in their habitat, and because of there not being enough traditionally managed meadows. Related spotting (male specimen): http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/262...