David
Element
Wildlife
Photography and Digital Video Images
__________________________________________________________________________________________ Hymenoptera 3 – Tawny
Mining Bees
TAWNY MINING BEE Andrena fulva
(f)
TAWNY
MINING BEE Andrena fulva (f)
- There
are almost 70 British species in the large subfamily of mining bees Andreninae
belonging to the genus Andrena. These fascinating little
bees are sexually dimorphic and many species are quite difficult to
identify from photographs unless the necessary characteristics for
classification by macroscopic means are visible – for this reason it is
recommended that they should be photographed from several angles if (like
the photographer) one does not wish to collect them. Until recently many
did not have vernacular names but these have now been applied for the many
examples that lacked them following the publication of ‘Field
Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland’ (see below for
details) and this will undoubtedly contribute towards the popularisation
and accessibility of these fascinating insects by opening them up to a
wider audience at a time when so many are under anthropogenic threat. The
female of one unusually distinctive species with a previously well-established
vernacular name, the Tawny Mining Bee A. fulva, has been
illustrated above. The males are far less distinctive in common with those
of many Andrena bees. For a more comprehensive photographic
coverage of these insects please see the BWARS website: http://www.bwars.com/Gallery.htm.
Many Andrena
bees are parasitised by nomad bees from
the genus Nomada and the most
frequently observed cleptoparasite for A. fulva is N. panzeri.
These nomad bees are quite difficult to identify from their markings
(entomological keys are required) and a knowledge of the identity of the
host bee may therefore be a very useful aid to their identification –
field observations are recommended, not least because of the ability of
these interrelationships to be fascinating! Fortunately
for those with an interest in bees there are some first-rate reference
books covering the British bee fauna that have been written and
illustrated by apparently indefatigable and dedicated authors, artists and
photographers. Anyone with an interest in bees should therefore see out
the following books (if they don’t already own them!):
- 'Bees
of Surrey' by
David Baldock contains numerous photographs of a wide range of Andrena (and other)
bees including many taken by Jeremy Early, Graham Collins and the
author.
- Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain
and Ireland’,
Steven Falk & Richard Lewington, Bloomsbury 2015 ISBN
978-1-910389-02-7. A masterwork and a model of how a useful entomology
reference book should be written and illustrated by undoubted experts.
Small and robust enough to be carried in the field.
- ‘Handbook of the Bees of the British
Isles’ Volumes 1 & 2 George R. Else & Mike Edwards, The
Ray Society 2018. Another masterwork on an epic scale. One for dedicated
experts – oh and very heavy. Definitely not intended as field guides and
one wouldn’t be able to carry these books for long!
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