Thyreus sp., Cuckoo bee

Swan Coastal Plain, Perth, Western Australia

The name says it all; Cuckoo bees (Thyreus sp.), just like their avian namesake are cleptoparasites of other bee species. This bee hovers low over the ground, scanning for the nesting burrows of Blue-banded bees. When it locates the burrow of its host the bee will deposit an egg in one of the unfinished cells. After the Blue-banded bee deposits her own egg and supplies the pollen and nectar she will seal the cell. The egg of the Cuckoo bee will hatch first, and will eat all of the food and pupate before the Blue-banded bee larvae hatches, which in turn will inevitably die of starvation. When the Cuckoo bees are not searching for other bees nests to extort I have seen them form long "trains" swarming around Melaleuca lanceolata bushes. Perhaps the flowers of these bushes, which are an abundant source of nectar to all sorts of insect species, provide a meeting place for the otherwise solitary male and female cuckoo bees.

Photographed for the Meet Your Neighbours international nature photography project in Perth, Western Australia.

Canon EOS 7D with Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro lens; 1/250s at f/16 ISO 250, flash fired: from hand.