“Give a child a set of crayons and a blank sheet and ask them to sketch out a bee scene. It’s likely you’ll see them use the green crayon—just for the flower stems. In contrast, the yellow and black crayons will get worn down to the nubbins, stripped of their wrappers, and probably cracked, trying to vigorously color the bees.” –Joe Dlugo, Washington Native Bee Society¹

 And yet, as firmly as “yellow and black stripes” for bees is fixed in the minds of children and adults alike, there are nonetheless bees of many other color schemes as well. Among them, the metallic GREEN bees stand out as being particularly exquisite. 

In our own state of Washington, there are more than eight species of native bees that look like they belong in the Emerald City of Oz:

Agapostemon sp.

• Two Agapostemon species (one of which we met in the original “Green Bees?” on this blog)
• Two mason bees of genus Osmia
• The green mining bee, Adrena ceratina, (very) small carpenter bees that appear black until you look closely at their dark green, polished-chrome finish
• Certain “dark bees,” as they are named, mimic the appearance of green mason bees and parasitize their nests
• Lasioglossum sweat bees aren’t as brightly colored as some others you might see, but these small fellows are a nicely buffed shiny sage green and can be readily found on dandelions in our area.         

Meanwhile, outside of Washington, an absolutely brilliantly metallic green bee (Euglossa dilemma) from South and Central America has become established in Florida, where it is thriving, according to Master Beekeeper and author, Rusty Berlew.³

In her response to a question in the October 2024 issue of American Bee Journal, she describes a fascinating characteristic of this genus: “the males collect floral oils and wear them like perfume (or maybe aftershave) to attract mates,” carrying the fragrant attractants in special sacks on their legs.

Berlew points to her first encounter with the species: she attended a street fair in Miami, where a fellow was selling oil paintings—several of which were covered with shiny green male Euglossa dilemma gathering oil from the canvases!³

I wish I had seen such a fantastic sight, myself—I’m green with envy!

References

1. J. Dlugo (2024) The green bees of Washington State, Washington Native Bee Society. Available online: https://www.wanativebeesociety.org/post/the-green-bees-of-washington-state
2. H. Wisch (2019) Sweat bees: Lasioglossum, The Great Sunflower Project. Available online: https://www.greatsunflower.org/Lasioglossum
3. R. Berlew (2024) Letters to the editor, American Bee Journal 64(10): 1031.