Field Guide

The black-and-gold bumblebee is associated with prairies and other grasslands. It is one of several species of bumblebees that occur in Missouri.

Megachilid bees are a family of solitary, native bees that carry pollen only on the underside of the abdomen, never on the hind legs. Large cutting mouthparts allow them to collect pieces of leaves, soil, or plant resins to line their nests.

Andrenid bees, also called mining bees, are solitary ground-nesters. Most are specialist pollinators whose life cycle is timed to correspond precisely to the blooming of specific flowers.

Many apid bees are well-known. This family includes the familiar honeybee, bumblebees, and carpenter bees, plus many that are less well-known. With few exceptions, most of Missouri's apid bees are native, solitary species.

Longhorn bees are named for their long antennae, which make these fuzzy, medium-sized bees look rather cute. Many have yellow faces.

The green robber fly is one of several species of robber flies called giant robber flies or bee killers. They are indeed large, with distinctive yellow and dark stripes on the abdomen and iridescent green eyes.

The yellowjacket hover fly, or Virginia flower fly, is a completely harmless mimic of yellowjackets. No more dangerous than a housefly, it buzzes around and seems aggressive.

Horntails look a lot like wasps but have a taillike spine that projects from the tip of the abdomen. Their cylindrical bodies also lack the narrow waist so common in wasps.

There are nearly 50 North American species of blue-black spider wasps. Many in this genus are entirely black, with a bluish sheen, while many others have an orange marking on the abdomen.

Spider wasps in genus Psorthaspis look quite a lot like velvet ants. There are several species. The ones in our area are usually red and black, just like the coloration of the velvet ants in our region.