Heather Mining Bee vs Coppery Sweat Bee

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Heather Mining Bee Coppery Sweat Bee
Scientific Name Andrena fuscipes Augochloropsis sumptuosa
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Andrenidae Halictidae
Size 10-12 mm 8-11 mm
Habitat Heathland Farmland
Diet Pollen Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Europe South America
Conservation Near Threatened Least Concern

Heather Mining Bee

A late-summer specialist bee that collects pollen almost exclusively from heather and bell heather. It nests in sandy soil on heathlands.

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Did You Know?

Its late summer flight season precisely coincides with heather bloom and it is one of the last solitary bees flying in the year.

Coppery Sweat Bee

A stout metallic bee with brilliant coppery-green iridescence found across South America. It is a solitary ground-nesting species that visits a broad range of flowers.

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Did You Know?

Its coppery metallic coloring shifts between green, gold, and red depending on the angle of light striking its exoskeleton.