Teddy Bear Bee
SPECIES Teddy Bear Bee
TAXONOMY Amegilla (Asaropoda) bombiformis
STATUS Not Listed
Australia is home to 1600 native bee species. Most native bees are solitary, meaning they complete their life cycle alone unlike the introduced social Honey Bee. Solitary native bees do not produce honey or live in large hives. There are some native species that do store pollen and make honey to survive over winter months. Bees are pollinators and help us grow our food and flowers with at least 90% of plants relying on pollination for reproduction.
Geographical Range
Teddy Bear bees are very closely related to the Blue Banded bee and are solitary in nature. They are found in all states of Australia except Tasmania.
Appearance
The bodies of bees are comprised of a head, thorax, and abdomen. They have six legs and two pairs of wings. Their two antennae are used to touch and smell, whilst their mandibles are used for biting or working pollen and wax. They have two compound eyes and three simple eyes.
Often mistaken for a Bumble Bee (however there are no Bumble Bees on mainland Australia), the Teddy Bear bee is golden brown with dark brown bands on their abdomen. Stocky and rotund, they are larger than the Blue Banded bee up to 18 mm in length. As they age, the hair on the top of their thorax becomes worn which leaves a black bald spot. The female has dark facial markings.
Behaviour
A characteristic of this native is their low pitch humming sound whilst in flight. If disturbed, they are not aggressive and simply will continue foraging for nectar and pollen. They will feast on a range of many different flowers.
The males will rest in clusters at night by hanging onto plant stems by their mandibles.
The female will build a shallow nest burrow in the ground near water. Often these are found in large, closely aligned groups. They will create a cell, add a ball made of pollen and nectar, and then lay an egg on it before closing the cell.
The Teddy Bear bee is among a few native species that perform a particular type of pollination known as sonification (aka as buzz pollination). As some flowers hide their pollen inside tiny capsules, this bee can grasp a flower and shiver the flight muscles causing the pollen to release. It will collect and then distribute the pollen from one flower to another. This is extremely useful in certain types of flowers that hold onto their pollen, and highly valuable to many crops such as tomatoes, blueberries, eggplants, and chilies. According to some research, up to 8% of the world’s plants need buzz pollination in order to reproduce. It is estimated that this activity within Australia has improved yields by as much as 30% in these crops.
Threats
This native bee is preyed upon by Cane Toads, frogs, and many birds. Urbanisation and the use of pesticide is also reducing flowering plants that the bees rely on and natural vegetation along river banks where they nest.
What we can do to help
Conserve existing bee habitat,
Provide habitat for bees,
Plant bee friendly flowers, and
Reduce or stop pesticide use in your garden.
Updated 5 May 2021