I was out exploring another one of the bare soil areas. This one is odd because several feet of loose
material overlay the bedrock. The
surface has a thin layer of clay, but beneath that is a mix of silt and sand.
Wet weather seeps keep this area wet during most of the
winter. Four weeks of droughty weather
have allowed things to dry out completely.
The clay surface layer has even developed cracks. My interest I this particular spot was a
swarm of tiny bees rapidly criss-crossing the area.
They maintained an almost constant low level flight. I kept watching for mating activity, but the
only interaction between bees appeared to be occasional collisions that
resulted in both bees tumbling to the ground.
After a split second disentanglement on the ground, they were back in
the air. If any mating occurred, it had
to have been the briefest of contacts.
I don’t recall having seen this species before. It isn’t one of those that are typically
attracted to sweat and I haven’t seen it on any flowers.
Those few that landed did so in just a brief instant. Their small size made it hard to see what
they were doing. The grass stalks in the
foreground give an idea of the small size of these bees.
My best look was of a dead specimen left
headless on the ground.
Some disappeared into underground burrows, so it’s possible
this was a nesting area and not the site of courtship activities. Those that landed wasted no time disappearing
into the nests. It’s also possible that
they are a parasitic species and were depositing eggs in another species nest.
Others that landed did a quick run across the ground and
then took off. Maybe they were having
some difficulty in relocating their nests.
I watched the activity for about 15 minutes at which time the bees
disappeared. It happened suddenly and I
have no idea where they went. I guess
they either dispersed or took their swarming activities elsewhere. It was an interesting encounter and like many
others I’ve had, I’ll probably never know exactly what was going on.
Fascinating!
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