Bee Blogs

This web-site is dedicated to my search for Halictus rubicundus.

H. rubicundus is a facultatively eusocial sweat bee which tends to exhibit solitary behaviour in cooler climes and social behaviour in warmer climes. This makes H. rubicundus an incredibly interesting bee to study in terms of its behaviour.

However, H. rubicundus nests are difficult to find as they are constructed in the ground and are only really obvious if there is a nesting aggregation. Nests are dug in Spring by a single female who typically rears a brood of 5-7 offspring.

The nest entrance is about 5mm in diameter and, occasionally, a small pile of soil accumulates outside the entrance as a result of the female's excavations.

I would really like to hear from anyone who think's they may have found a nesting aggregation of this bee as I need to find quite a few sites for my behavioural studies.