Alkali bee
Habropoda depressa
Shiny dark bee with pale leg bands and dense body hairs. Solitary ground-nester in alkali or clay soil areas of Bay Area. Specialist pollinator for alkali tolerant wildflowers and crops.
Plants that support Alkali bee
18 plants
Birch-leaf Mountain-mahogany
Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides
tree
Native bee collecting pollen during blooming/budbreak period
Black Sage
Salvia mellifera
shrub
Spring-summer pollen collector; larval host plant specialist
Branching Phacelia
Phacelia ramosissima
perennial herb
Spring nesting season pollen source
Brittleleaf Manzanita
Arctostaphylos crustacea subsp. crustacea
shrub
Spring forager on manzanita flowers and pollen
California Hedgenettle
Stachys bullata
perennial herb
Native bee specialist on Lamiaceae flowers during spring emergence
California Lilac (Blue Blossom)
Ceanothus thyrsiflorus
shrub
Spring bloom provides critical early-season pollen and nectar
Coast Live Oak
Quercus agrifolia
tree
Native bee foraging on oak-associated flowers and catkins
Flowering Currant
Ribes sanguineum
shrub
Spring nectar and pollen resource (Feb-Apr)
Giant Figwort*
Adelinia grandis
perennial herb
Specialized pollen forager; nesting season April-July
Leather Oak
Quercus durata
shrub
Collects pollen and nectar from flowering oak catkins
Mt. Tamalpais Manzanita
Arctostaphylos montana ssp. montana
perennial herb
Early season pollen forager
Popcorn-flower
Plagiobothrys nothofulvus
annual
Spring pollen collection for colony provisioning
Silver bush lupine
Lupinus albifrons
shrub
Host plant for bee larval provisions
Splendid Mariposa Lily
Calochortus splendens
geophyte
Ground-nesting species utilizing spring flowers
Yerba Santa
Eriodictyon californicum
shrub
Oligolectic specialist; yerba santa pollen key to brood provisioning