Images

A lovely dark Centris with blue highlights and a cape of white. Eyes like coals. What is it thinking? Collected with Laurence Packer while we toured southern Chile and Patagonia sleeping by the side of the road, in the woods or in pastures. Did anyone care. No. Chile is cool. Photo by Kelly Graninger.

Pseudagapostemon citricornis - More Chilean bees from Laurence Packer's expedition to southern Chile. Photographs by Kelly Graninger.

Pseudagapostemon citricornis - More Chilean bees from Laurence Packer's expedition to southern Chile. Photographs by Kelly Graninger.

Pseudagapostemon citricornis - More Chilean bees from Laurence Packer's expedition to southern Chile. Photographs by Kelly Graninger.

Epiclopis gayi - a cleptoparasitic bee (a.k.a nest parasite or cuckoo bee) of almost certainly Centris bees. Perhaps even of the Centris bee that was posted just prior to this as this bee was also collected in southern Chile on the expedition with Laurence Packer. Photos by Kelly Graniger and Anders Croft.

Epiclopis gayi - a cleptoparasitic bee (a.k.a nest parasite or cuckoo bee) of almost certainly Centris bees. Perhaps even of the Centris bee that was posted just prior to this as this bee was also collected in southern Chile on the expedition with Laurence Packer. Photos by Kelly Graniger and Anders Croft.

Epiclopis gayi - a cleptoparasitic bee (a.k.a nest parasite or cuckoo bee) of almost certainly Centris bees. Perhaps even of the Centris bee that was posted just prior to this as this bee was also collected in southern Chile on the expedition with Laurence Packer. Photos by Kelly Graniger and Anders Croft.

A lovely blue green teal spider wasp with purple highlights and infuscated wings. Collected in Southern Chile with Laurence Packer.

A lovely blue green teal spider wasp with purple highlights and infuscated wings. Collected in Southern Chile with Laurence Packer.

A little Chilicola species found on the expedition to southern Chile with Laurence Packer. A wee stem nesting bee. Photograph by Anders Croft.

A little Chilicola species found on the expedition to southern Chile with Laurence Packer. A wee stem nesting bee. Photograph by Anders Croft.

A little Chilicola species found on the expedition to southern Chile with Laurence Packer. A wee stem nesting bee. Photograph by Anders Croft.

Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.

Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.

Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.

A lovely Coelioxys from Argentina...note the hair emerging from the eyeballs..one of the few groups of bee species to have this characteristic. (honey bees being the most famous hairy eyeball bees). A nest parasite of Megachile, this female is typical in shape of the abdomen, long and sharp designed to insert eggs into the walls of the other bee's nests.

A lovely Coelioxys from Argentina...note the hair emerging from the eyeballs..one of the few groups of bee species to have this characteristic. (honey bees being the most famous hairy eyeball bees). A nest parasite of Megachile, this female is typical in shape of the abdomen, long and sharp designed to insert eggs into the walls of the other bee's nests.

A lovely Coelioxys from Argentina...note the hair emerging from the eyeballs..one of the few groups of bee species to have this characteristic. (honey bees being the most famous hairy eyeball bees). A nest parasite of Megachile, this female is typical in shape of the abdomen, long and sharp designed to insert eggs into the walls of the other bee's nests.

Coelioxys coturnix, male, Cumberland, July 2012, Maryland

Coelioxys coturnix, male, Cumberland, July 2012, Maryland

Most Coelioxys look similar (don't you agree?), dulled gray black, heavily pitted, with strong patterns of popping white hair bands. Ah, but here, we have one arrayed in batmobile colors, glossy, midnight black with reduced pitting and purple/black wings.