There's a colony of Large Shaggy Bee - Panurgus banksianus in the main car park of Alylesbeare Common which afforded me the opportunity of watching them closely over a couple of days last June. These bees only obtain pollen from yellow Asteraceae, particularly Cat's-ear, hawkbits and hawk's-beards as seen here.
MALES
FEMALES
Mating ball.
The Sainfoin Bee - Melitta dimidiata is a rare bee found only on Salisbury Plain where it collects pollen exclusively from wild Sainfoin - Onobrychis viciifolia. I visited mid June and saw lots of males but only a single female as it was still a bit early for them.
MALES
FEMALE
OTHER BEES AND INVERTS
Male Sainfoin Bee and Red-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus lapidarius
Common Carder Bee - Bombus pascuorum & Burnet Companion Moth - Euclidia glyphica
Spined Mason Bee - Osmia spinulosa
Male Yellow-legged Mining Bee - Andrena flavipes
Slender-footed Robberfly - Leptarthrus brevirostris
Green Hairstreak caterpillar - Callophrys rubi
Yellow Loosestrife Bee - Macropis europea photographed and filmed on the Exeter Canal on 3rd July 2025. This is a scarce and very specialised Bee which solely uses Yellow Loosestrife - Lysimachia vulgaris from which the female collects both pollen and floral oils, the flowers don't produce nectar and so the bees get this from other plants. The female also collects the floral oils to waterproof her nest which can then survive inundation in marshy areas.
MALES
FEMALES
MALE & FEMALE
