Pepe Para Riki (Common Copper) vs Two-coloured Mason Bee

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Pepe Para Riki (Common Copper) Two-coloured Mason Bee
Scientific Name Lycaena salustius Osmia bicolor
Order Lepidoptera Hymenoptera
Family Lycaenidae Megachilidae
Size 20-30 mm wingspan 8-11 mm
Habitat Beaches & Coastal Grasslands
Diet Nectar Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Oceania (New Zealand) Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Pepe Para Riki (Common Copper)

New Zealand's most common endemic butterfly, a small copper-coloured species found in open habitats throughout the country. Males are bright coppery-orange above while females are duller with more dark markings. Larvae feed on native Muehlenbeckia vines.

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Did You Know?

The common copper is the only representative of the family Lycaenidae native to New Zealand.

Two-coloured Mason Bee

A distinctive bee with a black head and thorax and bright orange abdominal hair. It uniquely nests inside empty snail shells on chalk grasslands.

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Did You Know?

After filling a snail shell with pollen and eggs, the female camouflages it by piling grass and plant stems over it.