Andrena nigroaenea sarnia

Range & Status

The females of this bee are very much darker haired on the sides of the thorax and on the abdomen, and also have more brightly coloured hairs on the upper surface of the thorax, than their mainland counterparts. They are found in both inland and coastal locations on all the inhabited islands. Here they are found nesting, often in large colonies, in exposed vertical faces of periglacial head. The bees are most active and numerous in April and May continuing into June. Richards (1978) describes the Scillonian and similar Channel Island form as a distinct subspecies.