Melissodes
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Melissodes is the second largest genus of long-horned bees - named for the characteristically long antennae of males. Melissodes currently has 129 described species, all native to the Americas, from Canada in the North to Argentina in the South (though less common in the tropics). The females of most species are either polylectic (collect pollen from a variety of plant species) or oligolectic (collect pollen from a narrow set of closely related plant species) on Asteraceae. Melissodes are important crop pollinators, particularly on sunflower, but they have also been observed on canola, cantaloupe, watermelon, cotton, coffee, and alfalfa.
Melissodes is the second largest genus of long-horned bees - named for the characteristically long antennae of males. Melissodes currently has 129 described species, all native to the Americas, from Canada in the North to Argentina in the South (though less common in the tropics). The females of most species are either polylectic (collect pollen from a variety of plant species) or oligolectic (collect pollen from a narrow set of closely related plant species) on Asteraceae. Melissodes are important crop pollinators, particularly on sunflower, but they have also been observed on canola, cantaloupe, watermelon, cotton, coffee, and alfalfa.
See also
List of Melissodes species
References
Further reading
External links
Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1343669360 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.