Osmia latreillei

Osmia latreillei is a species of mason bee belonging to the family Megachilidae subfamily Megachilinae.

Osmia latreillei
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Megachilidae
Genus: Osmia
Species:
O. latreillei
Binomial name
Osmia latreillei
(Spinola, 1806)
Synonyms[1]
  • Megachile latreillei Spinola, 1806
  • Osmia nasidens Latreille, 1811

Subspecies

Subspecies include:[2]

  • Osmia latreillei iberoafricana Peters, 1975
  • Osmia latreillei latreillei (Spinola, 1806)

Distribution

This species is mainly found in central and southern Europe (France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Greece, and Spain).[3] Occasionally these bees have also been found in North Africa and in the Middle East.[4]

Biology

Females of this species dig tunnels in the ground. At the end of each tunnel these bees hollow out cells where they lay supplies of pollen and deposit eggs. After the hatching larvae feed directly on pollen grains for about thirty days. These insects overwinter in the stage of prepupae. In the spring they enter the pupal stage, while the adults appear at the end of March.[5]

These mason bees are oligolectic, gathering pollen only from Asteraceae species.[6] The flying season lasts from April through July.[7]

However adults have been observed feeding on flowers of various families of plants, mainly Reichardia picroides (Asteraceae), Echium angustifolium (Boraginaceae), Vicia villosa (Leguminosae), Euphorbia spp. (Euphorbiaceae), Salvia verticillata (Labiatae), Rosmarinus officinalis (Labiatae) and Morina persica (Dipsacaceae).[5]

References
  1. "Osmia latreillei (Spinola, 1806)". GBIF.org. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
  2. Catalogue of life
  3. Fauna europaea
  4. Map of Osmia latreillei on Discover Life
  5. P. A. MOURIKIS, L. C. ARGYRIOU and ARGYRO TSOURGIANNI Crumbling of the Masonry of Ancient Settlements on Santorini Caused by the Hymenoptera Anthophora crinipes and Osmia latreillei Department of Entomology, Benaki Phytopathological Institute, Kiphissia, Greece
  6. Wafa, A. K. & A. A. El-Berry, 1972b. Nesting behaviour of Osmia latreillei Spin. and Osmia submicans Mor. Hymenoptera: Megachilidae. Bull. Soc. Entomol. Egypte 55: 363-372
  7. Mara Surez-Cervera; Jess Marquez; Jordi Bosch; Juan Seoane-Camba - An Ultrastructural Study of Pollen Grains Consumed by Larvae of Osmia Bees (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae)
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