| Augochlorella | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Augochlorella aurata | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Halictidae |
| Tribe: | Augochlorini |
| Genus: | Augochlorella Sandhouse, 1937 |
Augochlorella is a genus in the bee family Halictidae, commonly called sweat bees. [1] They display metallic coloration, ranging from reddish to gold to bluish green, as is typical for other genera in the tribe Augochlorini.
Augochlorella are very small sweat bees that are easily confused with the related genus Augochlora but differentiated by the pointed tip of the marginal cell (squared off in Augochlora), an orthogonal epistomal sulcus, and no strong basal lobe on the inner metatibial spur. [2] . These features can only be viewed under a microscope. [1]
The tribe Augochlorini is distributed between northern Argentina to southern Canada, but mostly concentrated to the tropics of the Americas. They are the most abundant bees in the Neotropical fauna. [3] Only a few species of Augochlorella reach the temperate Nearctic region. Augochlorella striata occurs further north than any other member of the tribe. [4]
Both sexes of Augochlorella have an average length of 7 to 9 mm (0.28 to 0.35 in), but males are more slender than females, and have relatively longer antennae. [5] [1]
Augochlorella bees are often eusocial, unlike many other Augochlorini, which are typically either solitary or semisocial. [6]
An example of sociality in this genus is Augochlorella aurata which contains a mixture of solitary and social nest foundresses. These fertile colony-establishing females produce an initial brood of 1-2 worker bees, which are female, before switching to a male-biased brood, while others produce males first. Female-biased broods can also occur in both solitary and eusocial nests, but that is less common. [4] In this and other eusocial species, workers are mostly sterile and slightly smaller than their mothers. Augochlorella aurata tends to be solitary at high altitudes and latitudes. It's also more often solitary in environments where the growing season is shorter, but if the growing season is longer than the species tends to be social. This tendency to base their sociality on the growing season can also be found in other bee species as well as in some species of spiders. [4] A maritime Canadian climate can lead to reduced duration of brood production, fewer workers per nest, and fewer reproductive bees. Additionally, nest foundresses may produce a mixture of workers and reproductively-capable bees based on these conditions. [4]
Augochlorella nests can be found in fields as well as wooded locations; well-drained areas, in a wide variety of habitats. [7] The ground is usually flat or sloped and mostly bare. [8] The nests are underground, and the bees create a cavity with a cluster of cells made of soil. There are many ways that bees construct their nests, but usually they excavate the cavity first and then create brood cells within that cavity. The cluster of cells is supported by additional pillars of soil. The burrow tends to be vertical and it can be anywhere from 5 to 25 cm deep; the depth of the burrow depends on how moist the soil is. [9]
In part of its range, the species Augochlorella aurata is active from the start of April until the end of September. Females construct pollen balls, the sole food source for the offspring, starting the second week of May until the middle of August, and workers start expanding the nests in mid June. [4] Queens start making their nests in the middle of April, and usually finish up around the first week of May. The number of cells the bees manage to make varies according to how many worker bees are present in the nest, but usually it is around three cells per female. After they lay the first set of eggs, there is a two-week period of inactivity, and then another set is laid. [9] The mean number of brood cells within the nests increases gradually during the summer, reaching a maximum of 12. Only a few cells are used twice and the number of offspring produced per nest average between 14 and 15, which shows that brood cells are not reused often. [9] Augochlorella aurata and Augochlorella persimilis can sometimes occur together in mixed aggregations. [10]
The genus Augochlorella consists of generalist pollinators, and visit plants such as Apocynum cannabinum , Erigeron strigosus , Pycnanthemum tenuifolium, Solidago odora , and Euthamia graminifolia . [7]
Augochlorella aurata is found in Rockefeller State Park Preserve in New York City where they can be seen pollinating dogbane, fleabane, mountain mint, wild roses, and goldenrod. Wild bees can be important pollinators in cities like New York and keep gardens and parks healthy. [8] Augochlorella aurata is also an important pollinator for many wildflowers and crops, including stone fruits, pome fruits, alfalfa, sunflower, pepper, strawberry, tomato and watermelon plants, making this species very valuable for commercial fruit and vegetable farming. [11] [12] In general, sweat bee populations will increase in an area if there are wildflowers and nesting areas available for them. [12]
The family Halictidae contains a few social parasites and cleptoparasitic bee genera, and these parasites affect the genus Augochlorella as well. Some prominent cleptoparasites include Sphecodes (like Sphecodes pimpinellae ), Microsphecodes , and some Lasioglossum species. Sphecodes females will typically kill the existing Augochlorella egg or larva in the cell before they lay their own egg. In most other cleptoparasitic species, eggs are laid on the unfinished cell walls or through sealed cells where the cleptoparasite larva will kill the existing egg or larva and eat the host's stored food. [12]
Mite associations with Augochlorella include Laelaspoides ordwayae , which are kleptoparasites that feed on pollen stored in brood cells. Although Laelospoides usually do not harm the developing bee directly, the bee is harmed since there is less food available for it to consume. [13]
Augochlorella has many general predators including birds, asilid flies, and spiders. [9]
The typical flight distance for Augochlorella aurata is 66-230 yd. (60-210 m). [3]
There are currently 17 described species of Augochlorella: [3]
Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea. They are presently considered a clade, called Anthophila. There are over 16,000 known species of bees in seven recognized biological families. Some species – including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees – live socially in colonies while most species (>90%) – including mason bees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, and sweat bees – are solitary.
Halictidae is the second-largest family of bees with nearly 4,500 species. They are commonly called sweat bees, as they are often attracted to perspiration. Halictid species are an extremely diverse group that can vary greatly in appearance. These bees occur all over the world and are found on every continent except Antarctica. Usually dark-colored and often metallic, halictids are found in various sizes, colors and patterns. Several species are all or partly green and a few are red, purple, or blue. A number of them have yellow markings, especially the males, which commonly have yellow faces, a pattern widespread among the various families of bees. The family is one of many with short tongues and is best distinguished by the arcuate basal vein found on the wing. Females in this family tend to be larger than the males.
Halictus rubicundus, the orange-legged furrow bee, is a species of sweat bee found throughout the Northern Hemisphere. H. rubicundus was introduced into North America from the Old World during one of two main invasions of Halictus subgenera. These invasions likely occurred via the Bering land bridge at times of low sea level during the Pleistocene epoch.
Lasioglossum malachurum, the sharp-collared furrow bee, is a small European halictid bee. This species is obligately eusocial, with queens and workers, though the differences between the castes are not nearly as extreme as in honey bees. Early taxonomists mistakenly assigned the worker females to a different species from the queens. They are small, shiny, mostly black bees with off-white hair bands at the bases of the abdominal segments. L. malachurum is one of the more extensively studied species in the genus Lasioglossum, also known as sweat bees. Researchers have discovered that the eusocial behavior in colonies of L. malachurum varies significantly dependent upon the region of Europe in which each colony is located.
The genus Agapostemon is a common group of Western Hemisphere sweat bees.
Mass provisioning is a form of parental investment in which an adult insect, most commonly a hymenopteran such as a bee or wasp, stocks all the food for each of her offspring in a small chamber before she lays the egg. This behavior is common in both solitary and eusocial bees, though essentially absent in eusocial wasps.
Within the insect order Hymenoptera, the Halictinae are the largest, most diverse, and most recently diverged of the four halictid subfamilies. They comprise over 2400 bee species belonging to the five taxonomic tribes Augochlorini, Thrinchostomini, Caenohalictini, Sphecodini, and Halictini, which some entomologists alternatively organize into the two tribes Augochlorini and Halictini.
Lasioglossum zephyrus is a sweat bee of the family Halictidae, found in the U.S. and Canada. It appears in the literature primarily under the misspelling "zephyrum". It is considered a primitively eusocial bee, although it may be facultatively solitary. The species nests in burrows in the soil.
Halictus ligatus is a species of sweat bee from the family Halictidae, among the species that mine or burrow into the ground to create their nests. H. ligatus, like Lasioglossum zephyrus, is a primitively eusocial bee species, in which aggression is one of the most influential behaviors for establishing hierarchy within the colony, and H. ligatus exhibits both reproductive division of labor and overlapping generations.
Megalopta genalis is a species of the family Halictidae, otherwise known as the sweat bees. The bee is native to Central and South America. Its eyes have anatomical adaptations that make them 27 times more sensitive to light than diurnal bees, giving it the ability to be nocturnal. However, its eyes are not completely different from other diurnal bees, but are still apposition compound eyes. The difference therefore lies purely in adaptations to become nocturnal, increasing the success of foraging and minimizing the danger of doing so from predation. This species has served as a model organism in studies of social behavior and night vision in bees.
Lasioglossum cressonii is a species in the sweat bee genus Lasioglossum, family Halictidae. Halictidae exhibit eusocial hierarchy behavior which is interesting given that eusociality in this group is hard to evolve and easy to lose. L. cressonii is found throughout North America. L. cressonii have been shown to be important pollinators for apple trees and many other North American native plants.
Lasioglossum vierecki, also known as Dialictus vierecki and Halictus vierecki, is a sand sweat bee and is part of the family Halictidae of the order Hymenoptera. It is found in the eastern half of North America from Minnesota to the New England States down to Georgia and Louisiana and up in Manitoba and Ontario. Commonly found in sandy areas, it pollinates various flowers such as grass-leaved goldenrod and rattlesnake master.
Lasioglossum figueresi, formerly known as Dialictus figueresi, is a solitary sweat bee that is part of the family Halictidae of the order Hymenoptera. Found in Central America, it nests in vertical earthen banks which are normally inhabited by one, though sometimes two or even three, females. Females die before their larvae hatch. It was named after José Figueres Ferrer, a famous Costa Rican patriot, and studies of its behavior are now general models for social behavior studies.
Lasioglossum aeneiventre, also known as Dialictus aeneiventre, is a social sweat bee and is part of the family Halictidae of the order Hymenoptera. Found in Central America, it nests mostly on flat ground though sometimes in vertical banks. It is often compared to L. figueresi.
Augochlora pura is a solitary sweat bee found primarily in the Eastern United States. It is known for its bright green color and its tendency to forage on a variety of plants. Inhabiting rotting logs, this bee can produce up to three generations per year. Both males and females have been observed licking sweat from human skin, most likely seeking salt
Halictus sexcinctus, commonly referred to as the six-banded furrow bee, is a species of sweat bee found throughout Europe and as far east as Asian Turkey and Iraq.The H. sexcinctus can be easily confused with the closely related species, Halictus scabiosae, due to very similar morphological features. H. sexcinctus show a social polymorphism in which different colonies can exhibit solitary, communal, or eusocial structure. Due to this large variance in social organization, it was suspected that it was not one species at all, but rather multiple, cryptic species. However, genetic analysis was able to confirm these varying populations as one species. H. sexcinctus will forage from multiple flower species, but prefers plant species with wide-open flowers. Their nests can be found dug into the ground in loamy or sandy soil.
Dialictus is a subgenus of sweat bees belonging to the genus Lasioglossum. Most of the members of this subgenus have a metallic appearance, while some are non-metallic. There are over 630 species worldwide. They are commonly found in the Northern Hemisphere and are found in abundance in North America. Members of this subgenus also have very diverse forms of social structure making them model organisms for studying the social behavior of bees.
Augochloropsis is a genus of brilliant metallic, often blue-green, sweat bees in the family Halictidae. There are at least 140 described species in Augochloropsis.
Augochlorella aurata is a species of sweat bee in the family Halictidae. It is found in North America east of the Rocky Mountains. The body is a brilliant green metallic color, diffused to varying extents with a copper, red, or yellow color. Its length is 5 to 7 mm. A common name is golden green sweat bee.
Megalopta is a widespread neotropical genus of bees in the tribe Augochlorini in family Halictidae, known as the sweat bees. They are the largest of the five nocturnal genera in Augochlorini. Most have pale integumentary pigmentation, and all have large ocelli, most likely a feature of their nocturnal behavior. They live in tropical Central America and the entirety of South America. The subgenus Noctoraptor is cleptoparasitic. They are not known from the fossil record.
