WHAT’S BUGGING


This female is foraging on a dahlia, her mandibles clearly visible. The scopa covers both the sides and the underside of the abdomen, enabling her to carry large pollen loads.


Smarter than Wile E. Coyote Like other bees in the Megachilidae family, the western  one of her favorite plants, the cutting is fast, accurate, and acrobatic. She sits on the piece she will remove, reminding me of the cartoon where Wile E. Coyote sits on the limb he’s slicing, invariably falling to the ground with a splat. But this beauty has brains. Just as the disc falls from the plant, she takes off with the goods rolled up like an oversized carpet secured with her legs. Although they are generalist foragers, the western


Asteraceae family for nectar and pollen. I frequently see them foraging on cosmos, dahlia,  area like the petals of cosmos, partridge pea, and clarkia in addition to the leaves of clematis.


A Sister Bee in the East The western leafcutter is in the subgenus Xanthosarus along with several other species. One in particular, Megachile latimanus, is common in the northeast U.S. and southeastern Canada. Known as the broad-handed leafcutter, it also has a


large body and nests in the ground, and the male has similar wide, fringe-lined forelegs. The two types are sometimes referred to as a “sibling species pair” indicating their similarity. Together, these two species cover much of North America, so be on the lookout for them in your garden. And never fear! The leafcutters won’t take enough of your rose bush or clematis vine to do any permanent damage. Killing the plants is not in their best interest, just as killing the leafcutters is not in yours.


Rusty Burlew is a master beekeeper in Washington State. She has been fascinated by honey bees since childhood and, in recent years, has become enthralled with the native bees that share pollination duty with honey bees. She has an undergraduate degree in agronomic crops and a master’s degree in environmental studies with an emphasis in pollination ecology. Besides writing for her website, HoneyBeeSuite.com, Rusty has published in many magazines, frequently speaks about bee conservation, and has served as an expert witness in bee sting litigation.


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