catwasp

Hi,

Can anyone help me in my search for nesting aggregations of Halictus
rubicundus. I'm researching their nesting behaviour so need as many
aggregations as possible. The bees will not be active yet but if anyone
remembers seeing any last year please get in touch. Any help will be
gratefully received.

Best wishes,

Catherine

Sleepalot

"catwasp" <catherine.catwasp@gmail.com> wrote:

>Hi,
>
>Can anyone help me in my search for nesting aggregations of Halictus
>rubicundus. I'm researching their nesting behaviour so need as many
>aggregations as possible. The bees will not be active yet but if anyone
>remembers seeing any last year please get in touch. Any help will be
>gratefully received.
>
>Best wishes,
>
>Catherine

Any particular area of the country preferred?


--
Sleepalot aa #1385

catwasp

I would welcome sightings of aggregations from anywhere in the UK. I
have more Northern sites than Southern at the moment so I need to find
quite a few more sites in the South. However, all reports would be
gratefully received.

Thanks,

Catherine

Tim Lamb

In message <1139419287.013831.186340@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups .com>,
catwasp <catherine.catwasp@gmail.com> writes
>I would welcome sightings of aggregations from anywhere in the UK. I
>have more Northern sites than Southern at the moment so I need to find
>quite a few more sites in the South. However, all reports would be
>gratefully received.

If this is characterised by a series of 4mm holes surrounded by a pile
of soil particles in compacted bare arable land, I have 2 sites in
central Herts.

Regards

--
Tim Lamb

catwasp

Dear Tim,

That is very likely to be an aggregation of mining bees. Lasioglossum
malachurum tend to make holes similar to the ones you have described
but H. rubicundus can't be ruled out. Would it be possible for you to
e-mail me some more details on these sites?

Many thanks,

Catherine

Malcolm

In article <1139396709.265786.63460@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups. com>,
catwasp <catherine.catwasp@gmail.com> writes
>Hi,
>
>Can anyone help me in my search for nesting aggregations of Halictus
>rubicundus. I'm researching their nesting behaviour so need as many
>aggregations as possible. The bees will not be active yet but if anyone
>remembers seeing any last year please get in touch. Any help will be
>gratefully received.
>
I can offer you a couple of species of Colletes, but I don't think we've
any Halictus. Sorry!

--
Malcolm

Larry Stoter

catwasp <catherine.catwasp@gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi,
>
> Can anyone help me in my search for nesting aggregations of Halictus
> rubicundus. I'm researching their nesting behaviour so need as many
> aggregations as possible. The bees will not be active yet but if anyone
> remembers seeing any last year please get in touch. Any help will be
> gratefully received.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Catherine

Could I ask what precisely you propose doing?

A number of years ago, I answered a similar query from somebody
undertaking research into bumblebees - I had a nice nest in a rockery.
The intended 'research' comprised digging out the nest and removing it -
at which point I politely suggested the researcher could get @£%@&*!!
--
Larry Stoter

Tim Lamb

In message <1han2sc.ar9kn617zziogN%larry@cymru.freewire.co.uk >, Larry
Stoter <larry@cymru.freewire.co.uk> writes

>> Catherine
>
>Could I ask what precisely you propose doing?
>
>A number of years ago, I answered a similar query from somebody
>undertaking research into bumblebees - I had a nice nest in a rockery.
>The intended 'research' comprised digging out the nest and removing it -
>at which point I politely suggested the researcher could get @£%@&*!!

Quite:-)

There is uncertainty if the sites I found are relevant but digging out
would be laborious as each bee seems to have its own hole and the total
amounts to several square metres.

I guess one spadeful from a 10ha field will not be missed.

regards

--
Tim Lamb

catwasp

The research I am carrying out involves behavioural observation and bee
marking. If, further on in my research I thought it useful to excavate
any nests it would only be done so with the permission of the
landowner.

Catherine


Tim Lamb wrote:
> In message <1han2sc.ar9kn617zziogN%larry@cymru.freewire.co.uk >, Larry
> Stoter <larry@cymru.freewire.co.uk> writes
>
> >> Catherine
> >
> >Could I ask what precisely you propose doing?
> >
> >A number of years ago, I answered a similar query from somebody
> >undertaking research into bumblebees - I had a nice nest in a rockery.
> >The intended 'research' comprised digging out the nest and removing it -
> >at which point I politely suggested the researcher could get @£%@&*!!
>
> Quite:-)
>
> There is uncertainty if the sites I found are relevant but digging out
> would be laborious as each bee seems to have its own hole and the total
> amounts to several square metres.
>
> I guess one spadeful from a 10ha field will not be missed.
>
> regards
>
> --
> Tim Lamb

David Lee

catwasp wrote...
The research I am carrying out involves behavioural observation and bee
marking. If, further on in my research I thought it useful to excavate
any nests it would only be done so with the permission of the
landowner.

Catherine

Purely out of interest - is this a University research project (eg Masters
or PhD) or an amateur project? "Amateur" is not intended to be in any way a
judgement of quality - I'm just fascinated to learn about the interesting
things that people get up to in Natural History and Ecology.

David

catwasp

Hi David,

I'm conducting this research as a Research Fellow at University College
London. I'm part of the Social Evolution group at the University. We
are really interested in looking at these bees because they are
primitively eusocial (i.e. have no castes) so are very important in
understanding the evolution of social behaviours.

Larry Stoter

catwasp <catherine.catwasp@gmail.com> wrote:

> The research I am carrying out involves behavioural observation and bee
> marking. If, further on in my research I thought it useful to excavate
> any nests it would only be done so with the permission of the
> landowner.
>
> Catherine
>
Thank you for clarifying that.

--
Larry Stoter