mining bee

noun

1. a solitary bee of the genera Andrena and Halictus, which sometimes resemble honey bees

Word History and Origins

Origin of mining bee¹

named from their burrowing habits

Example Sentences

Take for example Ophrys sphegodes, the early spider orchid, which has flowers resembling a spider's abdomen, but also reproduces the sex pheromones of certain mining bees.

From Salon

Buglife Cymru said it discovered a "strong population" of small scabious mining bees at St Julian's Park local nature reserve last week.

From BBC

Ninety bee species were identified - including aptly-named mining bees - 13 dragonfly species and 28 types of butterfly.

From BBC

Several of them are leafcutter and mining bees, which unlike honeybees, nest in the ground.

From Washington Times

The others are the shining guest ant, dark bordered beauty moth, small scabious mining bee, northern silver-stiletto fly and pine hoverfly.

From BBC