Blue-Banded Bee (anthophorid genus amegilla)
Image: Dave Hinchliffe
Last Observed: November 2015
Observed By: Dave Hinchliffe
The blue-banded be is a bee, with blue bands. In fact it’s a dead ringer for the yellow and black honey bee that you’re probably more familiar with except for the colour variation. And it doesn’t make honey.
It is a vital insect to agriculture and also to natural plant pollination – particularly in Australia – because it practises a very efficient form of pollination know as buzz pollination.
The blue-banded bee can sting but is less agressive than other species of bee and they are solitary dwellers.
