#dunnings miner bee

Dunning’s Miner Bee - Andrena dunningi

With a few days of sunshine and gentle winds, it’s finally beginning to feel like spring over here in Toronto. With springtime around, the flowers have opened, the greens are growing, and many prominent insects begin to make themselves known. Time for me to go outside! While tending to the front and back yards (and checking for dandelions), I was greeted by 2 distinct Beesflying around in search of flowers or mates: The Eastern Bumblebee and the Carpenter Bee. I’ll wager their numbers will pick up as they establish colonies and homes respectively, and come summer when many more flowers open, they’ll be out to forage for their families. While these are the largest Bees you might see, there are several smaller, solitary Bees that also emerge from an overwinter to build nests and search for food. The Dunning’s Miner is one such Bee. I haven’t seen any yet this year, but the last few years they have been spotted near flowers in my neighborhood. Or at the very least, a Bee very similar to it; Andrenidae (and genus Andrena) Bees can be tough to identify without looking at them very closely. Dunning’s Miner is well known and wide-ranged, so it’s the best chance we have to discuss this family of insects. The description below may sound similar to the Unequal Cellophane Bee’s description (different Bee family), but it’s worth it to share again.

 These Andrenid Bees make their homes in soil and sand, digging a column with side chambers to store the next generation of Bees and the pollen that the mothers gather as provisions. Though a solitary species, they can nest close to one another if there’s enough room to go around. The Cellophane Bees apparently nest in larger aggregates and (as can be determined from even a pictures) are larger than Andrenids, which helps to identify them if you happen to find some Bees near holes in the ground. Strange, but true to know that Bees can live comfortably in the ground, as we usually expect Bees to live in tree hollows or wooden cavities. They do live there of course, but underground living is more common than you may expect (even Bumblebees live underground). Nevertheless, whether in the ground or a tree, the hardworking Bees get to work providing for their young while simultaneously pollinating the flowers they visit. Dunning’s Miner is reported to be a generalist; feeding and visiting on many flowers. While Bumblebees may have more longevity (due to their colony structure) for pollination, Miner Bees can help get things going for the first wave of spring flowers! Enjoy these Bees while you can as they bow out gracefully after June, although other Andrenid Bees keep to a different schedule. Keep that in mind, as timeframe will help you identify what visitors come to your garden. Bless the Bees! Especially the mother Bees!

Pictures were taken on May 3, 2020 with a Google Pixel 4.