Bees chewing orchids and roses, Atlanta

[Loy Xingwen (Loy)]

Hi all,

I wanted to share an observation from the Atlanta Botanical Garden (Atlanta, GA, USA), where I lead the ecology research program, and see if it resonates with anyone here.

For several springs now we have observed what appear to be Anthophora (digger bees), likely males (yellow clypeal “mustache”), visiting our display of the rare orchid Cypripedium kentuckiense in an urban garden context. Their behavior in the flowers is consistent with what has been described from wild populations in Tennessee (Edens-Meier et al. 2021, J. Torrey Botanical Society 148:53–74; https://doi.org/10.3159/TORREY-D-20-00033.1), including apparent chewing/licking of floral tissues. We also documented removal of pollinia (see photo).

What surprised us is that (apparently) the same bees are also visiting a single cultivar in our rose collection (~200 m away, separated by fairly complex garden topography), where they exhibit very similar behavior: chewing buds and sepals and then “licking” the damaged surfaces. I have not observed any visible use of legs to collect anything, and all individuals seen so far appear to be males. Interestingly, we have many rose species and cultivars in the garden, but only this one seems to be targeted.

I’m not sure exactly what to make of this... possibly fragrance collection behavior to attract mates or improve fertility... but I haven’t seen references to US bees using roses in this way.

If anyone has seen similar behavior, or would be interested in looking into this more formally, I’d be glad to connect — our department welcomes research collaborations. For next season, if time allows, I’m considering more structured observations (e.g., mark–recapture to see whether the same individuals move between Cypripedium and the rose cultivar), but would appreciate suggestions on what additional data might be most useful to collect.

Thanks for any thoughts!

Loy

[Jack Neff]

Loy:  Male Anthophora abrupta are known to chew parsnip leaves and collect the masticate on brushes of specialized hairs on their labrum.  Sounds like the same phenomenon.  See Norden and Batra 1985 Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 87: 317-322

best

Jack

John L. Neff Central Texas Melittological Institute 7307 Running Rope Austin,TX 78731 USA 512-345-7219

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