Best Andrenidae

Andrena florea, known as the bryony mining bee, is an insect native to Europe, notable because females strictly gather pollen from white bryony plants.

The Tawny Mining Bee *Andrena fulva* is a solitary bee found across Europe. Females possess distinctive reddish-orange coloration, used for species recognition. These bees create underground nests within grassy areas and lawns. They are important pollinators, particularly valued by gardeners and eco...

The ashy mining bee, Andrena cineraria, is a solitary ground-nesting bee found across much of Europe and parts of Asia. Females are readily recognized by a black body crossed by two broad bands of pale grey hair, while males are slimmer and more uniformly haired. Each female excavates a burrow with...

The Grey Mining Bee (Andrena vaga) is a solitary insect belonging to the Andrenidae family. It is easily recognized by its striking, dense grey hair and early spring emergence, making it one of the first bees to appear as temperatures rise. The species is a pollen specialist, or oligolege, that reli...

Panurgus calcaratus is a ground-nesting mining bee native to Europe, first described in 1763 and notable for forming large communal nesting aggregations.

The orange-tailed mining bee, Andrena haemorrhoa, is a solitary ground-nesting bee found across much of Europe and active mainly during spring. Females are recognizable by the reddish-orange hairs at the tip of the abdomen, while males are slimmer and less conspicuously marked. The species visits ma...

Andrena fulvago is a mining bee species widespread across Europe, notable for its strict foraging preference for pollen from yellow-flowered plants.

Panurgus banksianus is a mining bee native to Europe, first described in 1802 and recognized as a vital pollinator of late-blooming yellow composite flowers.

The Yellow-legged Mining Bee (Andrena flavipes) is a solitary, ground-nesting bee species widely distributed across Europe. It is identifiable by the dense, bright yellow or orange pollen-collecting hairs on its hind legs, which are particularly prominent on females. The species is known to nest in...

Andrena nigroaenea, commonly known as the buffish mining bee, is a solitary bee species belonging to the family Andrenidae. It is widely distributed across Europe and active in spring, typically from March to May. Females construct nesting burrows in the ground, often in sandy or loose soils. The sp...

Gwynne's Mining Bee (Andrena bicolor) is a solitary ground-nesting bee belonging to the family Andrenidae. It is widely distributed across Eurasia and is recognized for its bivoltine life cycle. This means the species produces two distinct generations each year, with one flying in the spring and the...

The Shaggy Bee (Panurgus calcaratus) is a small species of solitary mining bee native to Europe. As a ground-nesting insect, it excavates its nests in areas of bare, sandy soil. The bee is notable for its strict foraging specialization, as it almost exclusively collects pollen from yellow composite...

Panurgus banksianus, commonly called the Large Shaggy Bee, is a solitary mining bee in the family Andrenidae. It is the largest British representative of the genus Panurgus and is associated especially with yellow flower heads in the daisy family, from which females collect pollen. Females excavate...

The Short-fringed Mining Bee is a European solitary species notable for its bivoltine life cycle, producing two generations between spring and summer.

The sand mining bee, Andrena barbilabris, is a solitary ground-nesting bee in the family Andrenidae. It occurs across much of Europe and favors loose, sparsely vegetated sandy ground, including dunes, heathland, quarries, paths, and inland sand deposits, where females excavate individual nest burrow...

The clover mining bee, Andrena labialis, is a solitary ground-nesting bee in the family Andrenidae. It occurs across parts of Europe and is strongly associated with legumes, especially clovers, from which females collect pollen for their larvae. Each female constructs and provisions her own nest, al...

The Black Mining Bee (Andrena pilipes) is a solitary insect belonging to the family Andrenidae, notable for its predominantly dark appearance. This species shows a strong preference for sandy coastal habitats, where females excavate nesting tunnels in the ground. Recognized as endangered in the Unit...

Andrena tibialis is a solitary mining bee in the family Andrenidae, described by William Kirby in 1802 and distributed across much of Europe into temperate Asia. Females excavate nests in the ground and provision separate brood cells with pollen and nectar. It is active mainly in spring and visits s...

Andrena minutula, commonly called the common mini-mining bee, is a very small solitary bee in the family Andrenidae. It occurs widely in Europe and nests in soil, with each female excavating and provisioning her own brood cells rather than living in a worker-based colony. Adults visit a broad range...

Andrena proxima is a solitary ground-nesting bee in the family Andrenidae, with a distribution covering substantial parts of Europe and the western Palearctic. Females excavate individual nests in soil, although several bees may nest close together where conditions are suitable. The species collects...

Rophites quinquespinosus is a Palaearctic bee species belonging to the family Halictidae, specifically adapted to pollinate plants in the family Lamiaceae (the mint family). The species name 'quinquespinosus' refers to the five spines visible on the bee's body, a distinctive morphological feature. T...

Panurgus dentipes is a ground-nesting mining bee native to the Palearctic region, distinguished by its oligolectic foraging on yellow composite flowers.

First described by Hans Strøm in 1768, Andrena fulvata is a solitary mining bee species widely distributed across northern Europe.

Andrena synadelpha is a solitary mining bee found across Europe, notable for emerging in early spring to nest in the ground and pollinate various flora.