Green Sweat Bees (Genus Agapostemon)

Size: Medium (10-11 mm) {Size Comparison – the average honeybee is 13 mm}

Color: Brilliant metallic green and blue; males have vividly striped yellow and black abdomens

Type of Flight: Very fast; often difficult to follow due to coloration

Distinguishing Characteristics:
(1) Females are vividly shiny metallic green on the head, thorax, (and in some species- the abdomen as well); the most common Georgia species has a black and white banded abdomen.

(2) Males are more slender than females. Males have bright yellow and black banded abdomens, as well as marking on the lower half of their faces.

(3) They are the largest of the shiny metallic Green Bee groups. They possess a distinctive circle on the back end of the thorax, where the thorax faces the abdomen.

Abundance in Georgia: Common

Typically Found in Georgia: March to October

Pollination Value: High

Plants Associated with: All flowering plants (Generalist – not specific to any type of plant)

Nesting Habitat: These are ground nesting bees; Agapostemon bees dig deep vertical burrows in flat or sloping soil. May nest solitarily or in large communes of 200+ females.

Classification: Family: Halictidae  Genus: Agapostemon

Number of Species in Georgia: 4 species
Number of Species in the United States: 14 species

Photos taken by Sam Droege and staff at the USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Laboratory (Used with permission)
–> Click on the photo to enlarge the image

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