Plasterer Bee vs Fairyfly Wasp

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Plasterer Bee Fairyfly Wasp
Scientific Name Colletes hederae Dicopomorpha echmepterygis
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Colletidae Mymaridae
Size 10-13 mm 0.139-0.240 mm
Habitat Beaches & Coastal Underground
Diet Nectar Feeders Parasitoids
Regions Europe North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Plasterer Bee

A solitary bee discovered in 1993 that is a specialist pollinator of ivy flowers.

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Did You Know?

It lines its brood cells with a waterproof cellophane-like secretion.

Fairyfly Wasp

The smallest known insect in the world at just 0.139 mm in length. Males are blind, wingless, and smaller than some single-celled organisms.

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Did You Know?

Males of this species are smaller than a paramecium — they are blind and wingless, existing solely to mate with sisters before they even leave the host egg.