Anthidium maculosum
| Anthidium maculosum | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Male | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Megachilidae |
| Genus: | Anthidium |
| Species: | A. maculosum |
| Binomial name | |
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Anthidium maculosum Cresson, 1878 |
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Anthidium maculosum is a species of bee in the family Megachilidae, the leaf-cutter, carder, or mason bees. It is a solitary bee where the males are territorial and the females take part in polyandry. The males of A. maculosum differ from most other males of bee species because the males are significantly larger than females. In addition, subordinate males that act as satellites are smaller than territory-owning males. This species can be found predominately in Mexico and the United States.
A. maculosum belongs to the subfamily Megachilinae within the Hymenopteran family Megachilidae. Megachilinae is divided into 5 tribes: Anthidiini, Dioxyini, Lithurgini, Megachilini, and Osmiini. The genus Anthidium, composed of carder bees, has 92 species of bees. Anthidium is part of the tribe Anthidiini, which is one of the most diverse genera of the family Megachilidae.
The distribution of A. maculosum ranges in Middle America and North America. These bees are most commonly found in Mexico and the United States.
The middle tibia of A. maculosum shows apical spines. Body sizes of these bees seem to correlate with head-widths. Therefore, a bigger head is correlated with a bigger body size. The body sizes of territorial and non-territorial bees are different. Territorial males have larger body sizes and thus correlate with holding territory, while the non-territorial bees are smaller. This smaller size is indicative of them being subordinate. In addition, males are larger than females, which is common in the Megachilidae family. However, this is rare in other bee families where the female is normally larger than the drone or male. A. maculosum nests are built in holes excavated in wood.
Female solitary bees lay their eggs continuously during the breeding season. They deposit their eggs right before they close their brood cells. These carder bees are diurnal and are active only when the temperatures are above freezing. Moreover, these bees are most active when there are plenty of resources such as flowers, from which they can extract pollen and nectar.
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