The
sweat bee genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
''Lasioglossum'' is the largest of all
bee
Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamil ...
genera, containing over 1800 species in numerous subgenera worldwide.
[Gibbs, J., et al. (2012)]
Phylogeny of halictine bees supports a shared origin of eusociality for ''Halictus'' and ''Lasioglossum'' (Apoidea: Anthophila: Halictidae).
''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 65(3), 926-39. They are highly variable in size, coloration, and sculpture; among the more unusual variants, some are
cleptoparasite
Kleptoparasitism (originally spelt clepto-parasitism, meaning "parasitism by theft") is a form of feeding in which one animal deliberately takes food from another. The strategy is evolutionarily stable when stealing is less costly than direct fe ...
s, some are
nocturnal
Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatur ...
, and some are
oligolectic
The term oligolecty is used in pollination ecology to refer to bees that exhibit a narrow, specialized preference for pollen sources, typically to a single family or genus of flowering plants. The preference may occasionally extend broadly to m ...
. Most ''Lasioglossum'' species nest in the ground, but some nest in rotten logs.
Social behavior among species of ''Lasioglossum'' is extraordinarily variable; species are known to exhibit solitary nesting, primitive eusociality, and social parasitism. Colony sizes vary widely, from small colonies of a single queen and four or fewer workers to large colonies of >400 workers and perennial life cycles.
The genus ''Lasioglossum'' can be divided into two informal series based on the strength of the distal veins of the forewing. The ''Lasioglossum'' series (or strong-veined ''Lasioglossum'') is mostly composed of solitary or communal species, even if some species like ''L. aegyptiellum'' show signs of division of labour indicative of
eusociality
Eusociality ( Greek 'good' and social) is the highest level of organization of sociality. It is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping generations wit ...
.
The ''Hemihalictus'' series (or weak-veined ''Lasioglossum'') includes species with a wide range of sociality.
[Michener, C.D. (1974). ''The Social Behavior of the Bees''. Harvard University Press. 404 pp.] The ''Hemihalictus'' series is composed of species which are solitary, communal, primitively eusocial, cleptoparasitic, or socially parasitic.
Eusocial species may have small colonies with only one or a few workers or large colonies with dozens of workers. Large colony sizes occur in ''L. marginatum'', which forms perennial colonies lasting five or six years, with hundreds of workers; this species is the only halictine bee with perennial colonies.
Subgenera
A list of subgenera (modified from Michener's ''Bees of the World''):
''Lasioglossum'' series: ''
Australictus'', ''
Callalictus'', ''
Chilalictus'', ''
Ctenonomia'', ''
Echthralictus'', ''
Glossalictus'', ''Homalictus, Ipomalictus'', ''Lasioglossum s. str.'', ''
Leuchalictus'', ''
Oxyhalictus'', ''
Parasphecodes'', ''
Pseudochilalictus'', ''
Rubrihalictus'', ''
Urohalictus''.
''Hemihalictus'' series: ''
Acanthalictus'', ''
Austrevylaeus'', ''Biennilaeus, Capalictus'', ''
Dialictus
''Dialictus'' is a subgenus of sweat bees belonging to the genus ''Lasioglossum''. Most of the members of this subgenus have a metallic appearance, while some are non-metallic. There are over 630 species worldwide. They are commonly found in the ...
'', ''Eickwortia,
Evylaeus'', ''
Hemihalictus'', ''Rostrohalictus
,'' ''Pyghalictus'', ''
Sphecodogastra''.
Subgeneric classification of ''Lasioglossum'' remains controversial, with disagreement among experts on the number and extent of subgenera.
Two of the better-known species are the European ''
Lasioglossum malachurum
''Lasioglossum malachurum'', the sharp-collared furrow bee, is a small European halictid bee. This species is obligately eusocial, with queens and workers, though the differences between the castes are not nearly as extreme as in honey bees. Ea ...
'' and the North American species ''
Lasioglossum zephyrus
''Lasioglossum zephyrus'' is a sweat bee of the family Halictidae, found in the U.S. and Canada. It appears in the literature primarily under the misspelling "''zephyrum''". It is considered a primitively eusocial bee (meaning that they do not ha ...
''.
See also
*
List of Lasioglossum species
This is a list of species in the genus ''Lasioglossum''.
''Lasioglossum'' species A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J-K
L
M
N
O
P
Q-R
S
T
U-V
W-Z
References
{{reflist
*
Lasioglossum
The sweat bee genus ''Lasioglossum'' is the l ...
References
External links
Lasioglossum Identification Guide List of SpeciesWorldwide Species Map
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1939370
Bee genera
Taxa named by John Curtis