Added to the British list by Falk & Early 2021 (Falk, S.J. & Early, J. 2021 Pemphredon fabricii (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae) New to Britain. British Journal of Entomology and Natural History: 34: 1.
Download the paper introducing this species to the British list below. Includes a revised key to British Pemphredon species.
This guide uses a combination of size, colour pattern and biological information to provide an identification key of 14 fairly distinctive species of solitary bees known
from Scotland. The key applies to female bees only: their male counterparts are often much harder to identify and are not discussed. Most of the bees in the key should also be identifiable from good close-up photographs as long as their critical features are visible.
The second edition of the Bees, Wasp and Ants of Kent by Geoff Allen has been published by the Kent Field Club. Priced at £16 including postage and packing (£12 at Field Club events), it has 198 pages in full colour in A4 format, with notes on all species recorded in the county updated from the first edition (2009) plus distribution maps and photographs. Copies may be ordered at https://www.kentfieldclub.org.uk/publications/books.
David Baldock et al - The Vespiform Wasps of Portugal, is available to purchase (19 euros plus carriage) or downloaded from here: The Vespiform Wasps of Portugal
BWARS members can purchase a copy of the Atlas of aculeate Hymenoptera of Lancashire for the pre-publication offer of £10.00 (inc. P & P), please make enquires direct to Dave Bickerton by 17th Jan sec@lacfs.org.uk with your name and address. You’ll be given a reference number and details of how to pay.
A slender ant with a high promesonotum, low propodeum, short spines and long gently curved antennal scapes. Aphaenogaster subterranea looks a bit like a Myrmica, at 3-5mm it is a similar size but is slimmer and has short spines. The petiole has a long peduncle rather like a Stenamma.
Distribution:
It is not found in the British mainland but there are occasional records from the Channel Isles.
Common in central and southern Europe.
Status (in Britain only):
The Channel Islands are not included in assessments of conservation status either in Shirt (1987) or by Falk (1991).
The pale to dark brown workers and brownish black males are very small (1-2mm and 1.5mm-2mm long, respectively). Queens are relatively large at 3-4mm long (Collingwood 1979).
Distribution:
Plagiolepis pallescens occurs in the Channel Islands, but is absent from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Elsewhere, it occurs in central and eastern Europe, its range extending south into Italy and Greece.
Status (in Britain only):
The Channel Islands are not included in assessments of conservation status either in Shirt (1987) or by Falk (1991).
Habitat:
Plagiolepis pallescens may be found in warm, dry, open areas where it nests under stones and in rock crevices. In the Channel Islands it colonises coastal cliffs.
Flight period:
Nests contain winged sexuals between June and August (Seifert 1996). Nesting biology and foraging behaviour Colonies usually have several queens. Workers tend homopterans for honeydew and forage for nectar. They follow trails to permanent food sources (Seifert 1996).
Michael Archer has kindly made avaiable a key to British "DEB" species. This can be downloaded here.
Michael comments "I have produced these keys via Perkins although I am grateful for the help I have received from Olmi". Note: Olmi authored the key work to Fenno-Scandian DEBS (Olmi, 1994).
A draft key to the British DEBS (Dryinidae, Embolemidae & Bethylidae) by Michael Archer. Michael comments "I have produced these keys via Perkins although I am grateful for the help I have received from Olmi". Note: Olmi authored the key work to Fenno-Scandian DEBS (Olmi, 1994).
Hylaeus signatus male emerging from roost
Pseudomalus auratus
