#3510 · 🐝 bees, wasps & ants

Red Mason Bee

🇳🇱 Rosse metselbij ·Osmia bicornis

🐝 Bees, wasps & ants 📍 in the Netherlands

8 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

what is it?

Osmia bicornis , synonym Osmia rufa , is a species of mason bee, and is known as the red mason bee due to its covering of dense gingery hair. It is a solitary bee that nests in holes or stems and is polylectic, meaning it forages pollen from various different flowering plants. These bees can be seen aggregating together and nests in preexisting hollows, choosing not to excavate their own.

base stats

NL sightings 595iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 17,831iNaturalist observations

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

Spotted 595 times in the Netherlands on iNaturalist: the #8 most seen of the bees, wasps & ants in NL.
17,831 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Scientifically named in 1758 (268 years ago).