Hi Kelly,

The leafcutter bee makes a small capsule out of leaves in
which she lays an egg and deposits some honey for the young to
feed on. I first discovered them as you did, by seeing one
disappear into a hole in the ground carrying a piece of leaf.
The leaves for the side of the capsule are oval in shape and
the end plugs are round. At my place they prefer the leaves
of deciduous azaleas, especially r. schlippenbachii; my plants
are covered with leaves with perfect ovals and rounds cut out.
I think they also like rose leaves. As I recall, the female
will build several capsules per day during the summer. Cool
insects!

Ed Schulz
Everett, WA

-----Original Message-----
From: Kelly Cassidy <lostriver at completebbs.com>
To: tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Date: Thursday, July 27, 2000 8:13 PM
Subject: Non-bird; insect ID?


>For the bugologists:
>
>Tonight, I watched a bee-like insect, about the size and
shape of a
>honeybee, repeatedly carry pieces of leaves into a hole next
to a brick in
>my yard in Pullman. I couldn't get a good look at it. It
would zip into
>its hole holding its leaf segment by its hind legs, spend a
few minutes
>inside, then buzz back out and take off in search of another
leaf. It
>appeared to have a grayish or black body with yellow hairs,
and possibly a
>yellow stripe or two, but the stripes are iffy.
>
>Are there bees or wasps that carry pieces of leaves into
their nests? And
>why? I didn't know any bees or wasps were grazers.
>
>Kelly Cassidy
>