TEXAS, USA — After several years of observation, a new blue bee has been found in Texas and Oklahoma.
According to the University of Oklahoma, the new mining bee species is part of the Andrena genus, fittingly named the Andrena androfovea.
Assistant biology professor James Hung and his co-author John Neff documented the species, publishing a study in the scientific journal “Ecology and Evolution.”
The discovery marks a new type of Andrena bee, of which there are 1,500 species and 104 subgenera (a classification under genus) worldwide, “making it one of the largest genera of animals on the planet,” according to the university.
These types of bees have short tongues, hairy bodies and are typically solitary creatures. They are also referred to as mining or digging bees. The Andrena androfovea is different than most in its subgenera, meaning its structure is unique compared to other Andrena bees.
“We think it has formed its own branch on the Andrena family tree about 12.6 million years ago,” lead author Silas Bossert said.
Not only that, but the bee is also the only species in its genus that appears to collect pollen from tomatoes.
Hung said he “observed this matte-blue-colored bee doing a handstand on the flower, sucking nectar with its tongue while scraping the flower with its hind legs and rubbing the flower with its hairy belly.” He said this is not typical behavior for mining bees.
After collecting videos and molecular data on the bee, Hung, Neff and Bossert were able to categorize the new findings.
New subgenera are rarely discovered in the wild, making these sightings all the more uncommon.