Family Colletidae - Colletid Bees

Colletid Bees are short blunt tongue bees. They feed on shallow flowers, particularly eucalypts and their relatives. They are small to medium in size. Some of them are hairy and some are hairless. They are solitary, i.e., each female build nest by herself and not share with others. They build nests in ground, wood or stems. Those burrow in ground mostly in clayey soil. Larvae feed on pollen and honey.

Leioproctus Bee 1

Leioproctus sp, Colletine, body length 15mm
We found this black hairy bee searching amount a bunch of dry leaves. The bee is metallic black in colour with white hairs around the body.
Reference:
1. Native Bees of the Sydney region, a field guide - Anne Dollin, Michael Batley, Martyn Robinson & Brian Faulkner, Australian Native Bee Research Centre. P25.


Leioproctus Bee 2

Leioproctus sp, Colletine, body length 15mm


Masked Bee, Black Hairless Bee

Amphylaeus or Hylaeus sp., Hylaeine, body length 15mm
The bee is black in colour, with yellow pattern on its thorax which is a common pattern on bees in Subfamily Hylaeine. This bee nests in stem, includes the flower stalks of the grass tree (Xanthorrhoea). For more information please check this page.


Reference:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, pp 995.
2. Insects of Australia and New Zealand - R. J. Tillyard, Angus & Robertson, Ltd, Sydney, 1926, p302.
3. Colletidae - Insects of Townsville, by Graeme Cocks, 2004.
4. Native Bees of the Sydney region, a field guide - Anne Dollin, Michael Batley, Martyn Robinson & Brian Faulkner, Australian Native Bee Research Centre. P33.
5. Masked Bee Specimen - Australian Museum, 2009.
6. Northern Territory Insects, A Comprehensive Guide CD - Graham Brown, 2009.