Native Metallic Green Sweat Bee

The green sweat bee is a beautiful native bee that comes out to pollinate from spring to fall.  These beauties typically nest underground in tunnels, which are sometimes adjacent to many other sweat bee nests.  They will sometimes even share an entrance into many diverging nesting tunnels.   It has even been documented that these sweat bees are even willing to nest next to other species of bees!

Nests are formed as they dig the holes with their jaws into the side of a dirt hill, and use mud to form partitions between each egg.  There is no honey made by these bees, but they are great pollinators to many flowers, which means more seeds of those flowers for the next season!

These bees are often on the smaller side (1/4 inch) but can approach 1/2 inch long.  The males have a green head and thorax, while the females are typically all green, with exception to one who has black and white abdomen with a green head and thorax.

They can be seen across North America feeding on a wide variety of blooms, as they are generalists.

Next time you are out gardening or amidst a large plot of flowers, watch closely and you might catch a glimpse of these remarkable bees.