November 14, 2022

On the rarest bee

The southernmost point in Devon - closer to France than Bristol - is Prawle Point. Within this headland's soft soils are burrows of the rare Long-horned bee.

It's a threatened species, feeding only on a select few wildflowers.
But this is not the rarest bee.

So the Long-horned bee feeds, burrows, nests, lays eggs.

And then?

Another type of bee sneaks in: the Six-banded nomad bee.

This is the rarest bee. It's a cuckoo. Larvae hatch and feast on pollen meant for the Long-horned.

A whole species. Dependent on another. Found only on Prawle Point, South Devon.