Ivanov S.P., Fateryga A.V.
First record of the invasive giant resin bee Megachile (Callomegachile) sculpturalis Smith, 1853 (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) in the Crimea
Number: 395, Pages: 7 - 13
Megachile sculpturalis Smith, 1853 was revealed nesting in a trap nest and a “bee hotel” in Simferopol. The nests were built of conifer resin with addition of mud and sawdust. Females visited inflorescences of Eryngium campestre L., Inula helenium L., and Carduus acanthoides L. while pollen samples taken from one foraging female contained only pollen of Ballota nigra L. Such a find of a newly established invasive species in the Crimea represents the easternmost point in its European range and possibly the most remarkable jump-dispersal event in its distribution (1,130 km from the nearest previously known point in Hungary). This is the first invasive megachilid bee species known to Russia.