Agapostemon sericeus

Description

Agapostemon sericeus, the silky striped-sweat bee, is a species of sweat bee in the family Halictidae. This solitary species is not choosy about nesting sites, including moist lawns surrounded by gardens and unmowed areas, as long as flowers are available. The genus Agapostemon (literally "stamen loving") is a common group of Western Hemisphere sweat bees, most of which are known as metallic green sweat bees for their color. They are members of the family of bees known as Halictidae. Like other sweat bees, they are attracted to human sweat, and they use the salt from the sweat for nutrition. They are generally green or blue, especially the head and thorax. Sometimes the abdomen in females is green or blue although it may be striped, and most males have the yellow-striped abdomen on a black or metallic background. They superficially resemble various members of another tribe, Augochlorini, which are also typically metallic green. All species of Agapostemon nest in the ground, sometimes in dense aggregations. Some species are communal such as A. virescens. In this and other communal species, multiple females share the same nest entrance, but beneath the common entrance burrow, construct their own portion of the nest. Thus each female digs her own brood cells and collects pollen and nectar to fashion the pollen ball upon which she will lay an egg. Unlike other social bees, in communal bees there is no reproductive division of labor. The advantage of this form of sociality seems to be that kleptoparasitic Nomada bees have greater difficulty gaining access to the nest and brood cells when there are multiple females inside. This method of defense against the Cuckoo bee (Nomada) facilitates attacks by larvae of the Blister beetle.