By Dr. Robert Norman, Clinical Professor, Dermatology, Nova Southeastern University
I attended a recent talk and walk for the Florida Native Plant Society, led by park founder Joel Jackson at the Lettuce Lake Conservation Park. Joel pointed out that two plants located in the Florida Native Plant Garden, the Gallberry and The Climbing Aster, are favorites to attract bees. With my head buzzing from wondering about bees in Florida, I almost immediately started forming the outline of this article in my mind.
Gallberry (Ilex glabra) is a common native holly of open forests and pinewoods. It grows slowly up to about 8 feet tall. The gallberry has small white flowers known to attract 249 native bees. In winter, the small bitter black berries attract birds and small mammals.
The Climbing Aster (Symphyotrichum caroliniana) is a cold-hardy, woody sprouting or climbing perennial vine that produces lavender, white, or pink flowers in the fall. It prefers moist soil and is not salt-tolerant. During our excursion on the boardwalk, we were fortunate to see Climbing Aster with all the color variations.
Although there are many other organisms (e.g., butterflies, moths, beetles, and birds) that contribute to pollination services, bees are likely the most important pollinators of native plants in Florida. In addition to ensuring the reproductive success of native plants, many of our crop plants depend on bees and wild pollinators for fruit set, the process of a flower forming a berry. And Invasive plant species may also exploit native pollinators for ensuring fruit set.
Did you know there are over 320 species of bees in Florida? And over 4,000 species of bees in the United States?
Wild bees vary widely in behavior, color, size, and shape. Often the color variation is widespread throughout Florida. Many of our endemic Florida subspecies have darker red coloration that usually is yellow further north.
The vast majority of bees found in Florida are species that have more extensive distributions to the north of the state. Some are widespread across the United States while others are restricted to sandy areas of the Southeastern Coastal plain. Florida has a relatively large number of endemic species and subspecies.
The conservation of bees requires that bees have the appropriate soil or vegetation conditions for nesting, that host plants have flowers present during the period of flight, that bees that have specific pollen requirements have flowers available during the period of flight, and that adult bees are not exposed to excessive mortality agents during flight (insecticides, fire, hurricanes, predators (spiders, beeflies, etc.). Many species of bees have natural parasites, including other bee species that may periodically limit bee populations.
We all seem to know about honey bees, the ubiquitous, medium-sized bees that live in large colonies and are used intensively for honey production and agricultural pollination. The only honey bee species in Florida is the non-native European honey bee (Apis mellifera).
As noted in Bee Basics (see reference), “Most people do not realize that there were no honey bees in America before European settlers brought hives from Europe. These resourceful animals promptly managed to escape from domestication. As they had done for millennia in Europe and Asia, honey bees formed swarms and set up nests in hollow trees. Native pollinators, especially bees other than honey bees, have been pollinating the continent’s flowering plants since long before the arrival of honey bees. Even in today’s vastly altered landscapes, they continue to do the yeomen’s share of pollination, especially when it comes to native plants.”
From where do bees come?
Back to Bee Basics. “Bees are descended from wasps. Most wasps are carnivores; they either prey upon or parasitize other insects or spiders, and use this rich protein source to feed their young. About 125 million years ago, when the first flowering plants evolved, some wasps made a switch from hunting prey to gathering pollen for their brood. Perhaps they were hunting for insects that visited flowers and ate some of the pollen or drank the nectar along with their prey. It didn’t take much to find the advantages of consuming pollen over hunting. Pollen is rich in proteins and doesn’t fight back, so it is easy to imagine why the bees became vegetarians. Gathering pollen and nectar requires certain adaptations different from those of hunters, so they started to change, to evolve to meet these requirements and consequently became bees. Even today, there are bees that appear very similar to wasps. Like wasps, some bees are also nearly hairless; and like female wasps, only female bees have stingers.”
What are the bee species in Florida? While you are following descriptions for each bee species, please see the reference guide noted below for color illustrations.
Sweat bees are very small to medium and often brilliantly metallic-colored bees of the family Halictidae. The bees are a diverse and common group of bees with 66 Florida species. They are attracted to sweat and will land on your skin to take a drink.
Leafcutter bees (26 Florida species) are a diverse group of solitary bees in the genus Megachile. This species is known for cutting round segments of leaves used to line their nest cells and are most easily identified by the pollen-carrying hairs under their abdomens.
Mason bees (14 Florida species) are solitary bees in the family Megachilidae and tribe Osmiini. Most are metallic dark blue and some are black and white striped. Mason bees are known for lining their nest cavities and entrances with mud.
Bumblebees (6 Florida species) are in the family Apidae, genus Bombus, and are most easily identified by their robust size, hairy abdomens, and packed pollen balls on female hind legs, similar to honeybees. The hair color on the abdomen may include black, yellow, white, and orange.
Carpenter bees (5 Florida species) are wood-boring bees in the family Apidae. Two genera of carpenter bees exist—large (Xylocopa) and small (Ceratina). The large carpenter bees may be mistaken for bumblebees but the carpenter bees have a shiny, smooth, and less hairy abdomen. The small carpenter bees are dark and shiny.
Note that mud daubers, like carpenter bees, are solitary, but they are not bees and belong to the wasp family. Unlike the round carpenter bee, wasps are characteristically long and slender with a very thin “waist” between the thorax and the abdomen (the inspiration for the term “wasp-waist”).
Long-horned bees (24 Florida species) are in the family Apidae and tribe Eucerini. The species includes specialists on sunflowers and squash. Females can be recognized by having very hairy and robust hind legs. The males have very long antennae, giving rise to their common name.
Mining bees (63 Florida species) are a diverse group of ground-nesting bees in the family Andrenidae. Two main genera exist in Florida, Andrena (small to large-sized bees) and Perdita (very small bees). Mining bees are known for digging deep holes in the ground in which they nest.
Plasterer or cellophane bees (26 Florida species) achieve their name from the cellophane-like substance that they create to line their nests. Plasterer bees include two genera: Colletes (black with light hairs, often striped abdomens) and Hylaeus (yellow-faced bees).
Cuckoo bees (73 Florida species) are called kleptoparasitic, or nest parasites of other bees. The female cuckoo bees will enter nests of other species and lay their eggs on pollen collected by the other mothers. Cuckoo bees have lost much of their pollen-carrying hairs and thus may appear more wasp-like.
Bees of Florida is a two-page pdf guide to some common bee groups and species you may encounter in Florida. Access the guide here: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu Bees of Florida
Reference
https://efotg.sc.egov.usda.gov/references/public/SC/Bee_Basics_North_American_Bee_ID.pdf
Bee Basics: An Introduction to Our Native Bees by Beatriz Moisset, Ph.D. and Stephen Buchmann, Ph.D.
Where can you find these amazing creatures called bees and plants like the Gallberry and Climbing Aster? Get out into The Great Florida Outdoors!
Dr. Norman is an advanced master naturalist graduate of the FMNP program from UF and a board-certified dermatologist based in Tampa and Riverview. He can be reached at 813-880-7546.
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