| Melissodes desponsus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Melissodes |
| Species: | M. desponsus |
| Binomial name | |
| Melissodes desponsus Smith, 1854 | |
Melissodes desponsus, the eastern thistle longhorn bee, is a species of long-horned bee in the family Apidae. [1] [2] [3] The bees are active in mid-to-late-summer. [4] [5]
These ground-nesting, solitary bees have pale yellow thoraxes and black abdomens. Females are 12-13.5 mm and have distinctive orange scopae on their hind legs, although they are often covered with white Cirsium pollen. Males are 11-13.5 mm, have longer antennae and yellow clypei. [4] [5]
Melissodes desponsus is found across the northeastern quadrant of the United States, reaching into southern Canada. [1] [6]
This species does not have a widely documented conservation status, although it is listed as vulnerable or imperiled by several regional sources. [7]
The species has several synonymous scientific names. The female of the species was described as M. desponsa and the male was described as M. nigripes in 1854 by Frederick Smith. Other synonyms include M. americana, M. daponsa and M. cnici. [2] [3] [8]
Carpenter bees are species in the genus Xylocopa of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant material such as dead wood or bamboo. The main exceptions are species in the subgenus Proxylocopa, which dig nesting tunnels in suitable soil.
Cirsium is a genus of perennial and biennial flowering plants in the Asteraceae, one of several genera known commonly as thistles. They are more precisely known as plume thistles. These differ from other thistle genera in having a seed with a pappus of feathered hairs on their achenes. The other genera have a pappus of simple unbranched hairs.
Cirsium vulgare, the spear thistle, bull thistle, or common thistle, is a species of the Asteraceae genus Cirsium, native throughout most of Europe, Western Asia, and northwestern Africa. It is also naturalised in North America, Africa, and Australia and is an invasive weed in several regions. It is the national flower of Scotland.
Cirsium arvense is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native throughout Europe and western Asia, northern Africa and widely introduced elsewhere. The standard English name in its native area is creeping thistle. It is also commonly known as Canada thistle and field thistle.
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterized by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the plant – on the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. These prickles protect the plant from herbivores. Typically, an involucre with a clasping shape similar to a cup or urn subtends each of a thistle's flower heads. The typically feathery pappus of a ripe thistle flower is known as thistle-down.
The Eucerini are the most diverse tribe in the family Apidae, with over 32 genera worldwide that were previously classified as members of the family Anthophoridae. All species are solitary, though many nest in large aggregations, and large "sleeping" aggregations of males are found occasionally. Most genera are distinctive in the unusually long male antennae from which the tribe derives its name. They are most diverse in the Western Hemisphere.
Bombus fraternus is an endangered species of bumblebee known commonly as the Southern Plains bumblebee. It is native to the United States east of the Rocky Mountains. It is most often encountered in the southern Great Plains and along the Gulf Coastal Plain. This species has been found as far north as New Jersey and North Dakota, and as far south as Florida along the Gulf Coastal Plain into the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. This species was uncommon historically, but having faced declines in population; its estimated abundance is less than 15% of historical numbers.
Xyphosia miliaria is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the family Tephritidae.
Zygaena lonicerae, the narrow-bordered five-spot burnet, is a moth of the family Zygaenidae. The species was first described by Theodor Gottlieb von Scheven in 1777.
Aceria anthocoptes, also known as the russet mite, rust mite, thistle mite or the Canada thistle mite, is a species of mite that belongs to the family Eriophyidae. It was first described by Alfred Nalepa in 1892.
Cirsium muticum, also known as swamp thistle, marsh thistle, dunce-nettle, or horsetops, is a North American species of plants in the family Asteraceae, native to central and eastern Canada and the central and eastern United States.
Bombus centralis, the central bumblebee, is a species of bumble bee found in parts of Canada and the western United States. The species was first described by Ezra Townsend Cresson in 1864.
Bombus frigidus, the frigid bumblebee, is a rare species of bumblebee largely found in Canada and parts of the United States.
Leioproctus fulvescens is a species of solitary bee belonging to the family Colletidae. This bee is endemic to the South Island of New Zealand, and its yellow-orange hair distinguishes it from all other New Zealand species of Leioproctus.
Cirsium horridulum, called bristly thistle, purple thistle, or yellow thistle is a North American species of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae. It is an annual or biennial. The species is native to the eastern and southern United States from New England to Florida, Texas, and Oklahoma as well as to Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and the Bahamas.
Calliopsis is a genus of panurgine bees in the family Andrenidae. There are over 80 described species distributed throughout the western hemisphere.
Paracantha gentilis is a species of tephritid or fruit fly in the genus Paracantha of the family Tephritidae. It has a widespread distribution throughout the Western United States, and has also been found as far south as Mexico and Costa Rica. It most closely resembles Paracantha culta, which is widespread in the Southeastern United States, but P. gentilis can be distinguished by having smaller spots on the head.
Larinus sturnus is a species of cylindrical weevils belonging to the family Curculionidae, subfamily Lixinae.
Altica cirsicola is a species of flea beetle from the genus Altica, which belongs to the family Chrysomelidae. A. cirsicola is found throughout East Asia. Adults feed exclusively on plants from the genus Cirsium. This food resource provides the species with the opportunity to create holes in the leaves of the plant, which helps to provide the beetles with camouflage and protection from predators.