Bee for ID

[Cheryl]

Took these a couple of weeks ago - very sandy soil with lots of holes like these



And the creature I think is this



But I've no idea what it is?

[eucera]

Now this is quite an easy one!! This is Dasypoda hirtipes (=D. altercator). Check out distribution and pics on the BWARS Gallery and maps pages (BWARS Home Page)

The species has the most enormously long pollen collecting hairs on the hind legs, and always collects pollen from yellow-flowered Asteraceae. The species can nest in good sized aggregations in UK (I have seen over 1000 nests in a site in Dorset). However, in Russia, Nina Blagoveshchenskaya found an absolutely stonking nesting aggregation along the sandy banks of a river. The aggregation extended for several km and numbered hundreds of thousands of nests

[Cheryl]

Originally Posted by eucera

Now this is quite an easy one!!

Only when you know the answer

Thank you Eucera I shall check out the link you've given and that plant you've mentioned

Thanks for your help

[eucera]

I have looked out the Blagoveshchenskaya paper and can cite a few figures: The nesting aggregation was along the sandy banks of the River Barysh. The aggregation varied from 10-150m in width and extended for 7km. The Dasypoda nests were at a density of 21 per square metre. This gives a staggering nesting population of millions of nests. This is the largest known nesting aggregation of any bee species anywhere in the world