Dufourea novaeangliae

Dufourea novaeangliae is a solitary ground-nesting bee that lives in the eastern U.S. The range of these bees is presumably limited by the availability of its only known pollen source, the pickerel weed (Pontederia cordata). This is an aquatic freshwater plant, and thus D. novaeangliae nests are often found in sandy soil near ponds and streams [1]. Most female D. novaeangliae build a single nest in a season, with the offspring over-wintering as prepupae in a cocoon [2]. In the spring, males emerge approximately one week prior to females [2], and they patrol pickerel weed flowers or nesting aggregations for receptive females to mate with [1].

D. novaeangliae is in the subfamily Rophitinae of the family Halictidae [3]. They are thus basal to the sweat bees of the family Halictinae [3,4]. Most species in this subfamily specialize on one or a few host plants, with closely related species of Dufourea sometimes specializing on distantly related plants [4].

References
1. Kukuk PF, Eickwort GC, Wesley FR: Mate-Seeking Behavior of Dufourea novaeangliae (Hymenoptera: Halictidae: Dufoureinae): The Effects of Resource Distribution. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 1985, 58:142-150.
2. Eickwort GC, Kukuk PF, Wesley FR: The Nesting Biology of Dufourea novaeangliae (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) and the Systematic Position of the Dufoureinae Based on Behavior and Development. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 1986, 59:103-120.
3. Danforth BN, Eardley C, Packer L, Walker K, Pauly A, Randrianambinintsoa FJ: Phylogeny of Halictidae with an emphasis on endemic African Halictinae. Apidologie 2008, 39:86-101.
4. Patiny S, Michez D, Danforth BN: Phylogenetic relationships and host-plant evolution within the basal clade of Halictidae (Hymenoptera, Apoidea). Cladistics 2008, 24:255-269.