List of bees of Great Britain

This is a list of bees of Great Britain. The following species are all within the superfamily Apoidea. Over 250 species have been identified in the UK.[1]

Family Colletidae

Genus Colletes: plasterer bees

Genus Hylaeus: yellow-face bees

  • Hylaeus annularis, shingle yellow-face bee; Widespread, locally common syn. Hylaeus spilotus
  • Hylaeus brevicornis, short-horned yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus communis, common yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus confusus, white-jawed yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus cornutus, spined hylaeus bee
  • Hylaeus dilatatus, chalk yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus hyalinatus, hairy yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus incongruus, white-lipped yellow-face bee; syn. Hylaeus gibbus
  • Hylaeus pectoralis, reed yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus pictipes, little yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus punctulatissimus, onion yellow-face bee
  • Hylaeus signatus, large yellow-face bee

Family Andrenidae

Genus Andrena: mining bees

Subgenus Micrandrena: mini-miners

  • Andrena alfkenella, Alfken's miniature mining bee
  • Andrena falsifica, thick-margined miniature mining bee
  • Andrena floricola, Chilterns miniature mining bee
  • Andrena minutula, common miniature mining bee
  • Andrena minutuloides, plain miniature mining bee
  • Andrena nana, Barham miniature mining bee
  • Andrena nanula, red-horned miniature mining bee
  • Andrena niveata, long-fringed miniature mining bee
  • Andrena semilaevis, shiny-margined miniature mining bee
  • Andrena subopaca, impunctate miniature mining bee

Genus Panurgus: shaggy bees

  • Panurgus banksianus, large shaggy bee
  • Panurgus calcaratus, small shaggy bee

Family Halictidae

Genus Halictus: end-banded furrow bees

Genus Lasioglossum: base-banded furrow bees

Genus Sphecodes: blood bees

Genus Dufourea: short-faced bees

  • Dufourea halictula, sheep's bit short-faced bee
  • Dufourea minuta, shiny short-faced bee

Genus Rophites: bristle-headed bees

  • Rophites quinquespinosus, five-spined bee

Family Melittidae

Genus Dasypoda: pantaloon bees

Genus Melitta: blunthorn bees

  • Melitta dimidiata, sainfoin blunthorn bee
  • Melitta haemorrhoidalis, bellflower blunthorn bee
  • Melitta leporina, clover blunthorn bee
  • Melitta tricincta, red bartsia blunthorn bee

Genus Macropis: loosestrife bees

Genus Anthidium: wool carder bees

Genus Stelis: dark bees

  • Stelis breviuscula, little dark bee
  • Stelis ornatula, spotted dark bee
  • Stelis phaeoptera, plain dark bee
  • Stelis punctulatissima, banded dark bee

Genus Heriades: resin bees

  • Heriades truncorum, ridge-saddled carpenter bee

Genus Chelostoma: scissor bees

Genus Osmia: mason bees

Genus Hoplitis: lesser mason bees

  • Hoplitis claviventris, welted lesser mason bee
  • Hoplitis leucomelana, black and white lesser mason bee
  • Hoplitis spinulosa, spined mason bee syn. Osmia spinulosa

Genus Megachile: leaf-cutter bees

Genus Coelioxys: sharp-tailed bees

  • Coelioxys afra, short sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys brevis, narrow-bodied sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys conoidea, large sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys elongata, dull-vented sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys inermis, shiny-vented sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys mandibularis, small leaf-cutter cuckoo bee
  • Coelioxys quadridentata, four-toothed sharp-tailed bee
  • Coelioxys rufescens, rufescent sharp-tailed bee

Family Apidae

Genus Nomada: nomad bees

  • Nomada alboguttata, large bear-clawed nomad bee
  • Nomada argentata, silver-sided nomad bee
  • Nomada armata, armed nomad bee
  • Nomada baccata, bear-clawed nomad bee
  • Nomada bifasciata, dusky-horned nomad bee
  • Nomada castellana, Castell's nomad bee
  • Nomada conjungens, fringeless nomad bee
  • Nomada errans, Purbeck nomad bee
  • Nomada fabriciana, Fabricus' nomad bee
  • Nomada ferruginata, yellow-shouldered nomad bee
  • Nomada flava, flavous yellow nomad bee
  • Nomada flavoguttata, small nomad bee
  • Nomada flavopicta, blunthorn nomad bee
  • Nomada fucata, painted nomad bee
  • Nomada fulvicornis, orange-horned nomad bee
  • Nomada fuscicornis, small Guernsey nomad bee
  • Nomada glabella, bilberry nomad bee
  • Nomada goodeniana, Gooden's nomad bee
  • Nomada guttulata, short-spined nomad bee
  • Nomada hirtipes, long-horned nomad bee
  • Nomada integra, catsear nomad bee
  • Nomada lathburiana, lathbury's nomad bee
  • Nomada leucophthalma, early nomad bee
  • Nomada marshamella, Marsham's nomad bee
  • Nomada obtusifrons, flat-ridged nomad bee
  • Nomada panzeri, Panzer's nomad bee
  • Nomada roberjeotiana, tormentil nomad bee
  • Nomada ruficornis, fork-jawed nomad bee
  • Nomada rufipes, black-horned nomad bee
  • Nomada sexfasciata, six-banded nomad bee
  • Nomada sheppardana, Sheppard's nomad bee
  • Nomada signata, broad-banded nomad bee
  • Nomada similis, Guernsey nomad bee
  • Nomada striata, blunt-jawed nomad bee
  • Nomada subcornuta, Kirby's nomad bee
  • Nomada succincta, yellow-legged nomad bee
  • Nomada zonata, variable nomad bee

Genus Epeolus: cuckoo mining bees

  • Epeolus cruciger, red thighed cuckoo mining bee
  • Epeolus variegatus, variegated cuckoo mining bee

Genus Eucera: long-horned bees

Genus Anthophora: flower bees

Genus Melecta: mourning bees

Genus Ceratina: small carpenter bees

Genus Xylocopa: large carpenter bees

Genus Bombus: bumblebees

Subgenus Bombus: white-tailed bumblebees

Subgenus Kallobombus: broken-belted bumblebee

Subgenus Megabombus: greater bumblebees

Subgenus Melanobombus: black-bodied bumblebees

Subgenus Psithyrus: cuckoo bumblebees

Subgenus Pyrobombus: fiery-tailed bumblebees

Subgenus Subterraneobombus: yellow bumblebee

Subgenus Thoracombus: carder bees

Genus Apis: honeybees

References

  1. ^ Downing, Emma; Sutherland, Nikki (2024-11-12), The UK bee population, House of Commons Library
  2. ^ "Bee thought to be extinct found in East Sussex". The Guardian. 11 October 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  • Else, George "Section 10 - Check List of British Hymenoptera Aculeata" in Archer, Michael (2005) Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society Members' Handbook ISBN 1-870393-79-1 (pp. 113–131)
  • Baldock, David W. (2008) Bees of Surrey ISBN 978-0-9556188-1-9
  • BWARS Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society
  • Falk, Steven - https://www.flickr.com/photos/63075200@N07/collections/72157631518508520/
  • Falk, S. and Lewington, R., 2019. Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland. London: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
  • BWARS - Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society