Bees in the Ground

 

Patty Hatcher sent me this short video of these bees that were coming up from underground.  With my vast bee experience I identified them as ground-nesting bees.  (Well maybe half-vast).  I sent two screen shots from the video to INaturalist and came up with the best possible first guess as an Orange-legged Furrow Bee, Halictus rubicundus.

With the internet resources available, half the fun is in the chase.  There will likely be  bee enthusiasts (word of the day - apiologists) who will respond, and then there is Bugguide.  Hosted by the University of Iowa, it is a collection of entomologists who volunteer to identify bugs.   This submission will be reviewed by experts who will come up with a species or say that the photo isn't clear enough to ID it.

For now, I am going with H. rubicundus.  Wikipedia describes it as a common sweat bee.  It arrived in North America in one of the "invasions that likely occurred via the Bering land bridge at times of low sea level during the Pleistocene epoch."  They can be solitary or eusocial (a single female or caste produces the offspring and nonreproductive individuals cooperate in caring for the young.)  The article has lots of information on their life style.

While Patty and I wait for conformation or denial, the internet can "bee" a source of education and entertainment about ground-nesting bees.  Seventy percent of known bee species are ground nesters according to the Xerces Society.  While a lot of on-line chatter is about eliminating them as a danger, they are valuable as pollinators and can use our help in lawn and garden maintenance.