﻿The 
  British 
  Species 
  of 
  Andrena 
  and 
  Nomada. 
  ^55 
  

  

  reticulatus 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  found. 
  There 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  no 
  doubt 
  

   that 
  the 
  Sphecodes 
  is 
  pecuharly 
  attached 
  to 
  this 
  small 
  

   Andrena. 
  On 
  the 
  Continent 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  

   burrow 
  of 
  the 
  latter. 
  

  

  A. 
  fidvago 
  is 
  of 
  very 
  wide 
  distribution; 
  in 
  some 
  locali- 
  

   ties 
  rare 
  and 
  dispersed, 
  in 
  others 
  forming 
  dense 
  compact 
  

   colonies, 
  but 
  so 
  local 
  that 
  until 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  is 
  chanced 
  on 
  

   its 
  presence 
  may 
  remain 
  undetected 
  in 
  the 
  district. 
  It 
  

   likes 
  a 
  sandy 
  soil, 
  and 
  is 
  particularly 
  attached 
  to 
  Hieracivm. 
  

   One 
  would 
  expect 
  it 
  to 
  occur 
  in 
  most 
  counties 
  where 
  con- 
  

   ditions 
  of 
  soil 
  are 
  favourable, 
  since 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  in 
  Suffolk, 
  

   Surrey, 
  Sussex, 
  the 
  Isle 
  of 
  Wight 
  and 
  Hants 
  ; 
  in 
  Devon, 
  

   Monmouth 
  and 
  South 
  Wales 
  in 
  the 
  west; 
  in 
  Warwick- 
  

   shire; 
  in 
  Yorkshire 
  in 
  the 
  north, 
  and 
  in 
  Scotland. 
  It 
  

   may 
  appear 
  in 
  May, 
  and 
  is 
  common 
  in 
  June, 
  and 
  continues 
  

   into 
  July 
  or 
  even 
  August. 
  Though 
  I 
  have 
  closely 
  examined 
  

   colonies 
  of 
  this 
  bee 
  I 
  have 
  found 
  no 
  parasite 
  at 
  its 
  burrows. 
  

  

  A. 
  polita 
  is 
  now, 
  perhaps, 
  the 
  rarest 
  of 
  all 
  our 
  Andrenas, 
  

   and 
  has 
  very 
  rarely 
  been 
  found 
  since 
  it 
  was 
  discovered 
  by 
  

   F. 
  Smith. 
  Being 
  a 
  large 
  and 
  conspicuous 
  species 
  it 
  must 
  

   be 
  excessively 
  local, 
  since 
  it 
  could 
  hardly 
  be 
  overlooked, 
  

   and 
  its 
  range 
  is 
  probably 
  very 
  limited 
  indeed. 
  One 
  would 
  

   expect 
  it 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  on 
  yellow 
  Composites, 
  and 
  it 
  should 
  

   be 
  looked 
  for 
  in 
  June 
  and 
  July 
  in 
  the 
  south-eastern 
  counties. 
  

  

  With 
  A. 
  proxiina 
  we 
  pass 
  to 
  a 
  group 
  of 
  very 
  small 
  and 
  

   comparatively 
  difficult 
  bees, 
  only 
  the 
  one 
  just 
  named 
  being 
  

   of 
  medium 
  size 
  for 
  the 
  genus. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  local 
  species 
  and 
  

   often 
  very 
  scarce 
  even 
  where 
  it 
  does 
  occur. 
  In 
  Norfolk, 
  

   Suffolk, 
  Kent, 
  Dorset 
  and 
  Devon 
  it 
  is, 
  I 
  believe, 
  to 
  be 
  

   obtained 
  not 
  uncommonly 
  in 
  its 
  special 
  localities; 
  but 
  it 
  

   varies 
  in 
  numbers 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  in 
  different 
  seasons. 
  It 
  is 
  

   also 
  recorded 
  from 
  Surrey, 
  Hampshire, 
  Gloucestershire 
  

   and 
  Cornwall, 
  so 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  widely 
  distributed 
  in 
  the 
  south. 
  

   It 
  is 
  peculiarly 
  attached 
  to 
  the 
  flowers 
  of 
  white 
  Umbelli- 
  

   ferae, 
  on 
  several 
  species 
  of 
  which 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  found, 
  both 
  

   sexes 
  alike 
  visiting 
  these 
  plants. 
  It 
  is 
  also 
  partial 
  to 
  

   Euphorbia. 
  

  

  Probably 
  in 
  most 
  localities, 
  where 
  it 
  occurs 
  at 
  all 
  freely, 
  

   its 
  special 
  parasite 
  Nomada 
  conjungens 
  will 
  be 
  found. 
  

   Though 
  so 
  lately 
  added 
  to 
  our 
  Hsts, 
  it 
  is 
  interesting 
  to 
  

   note 
  that 
  this 
  species 
  was 
  taken 
  one 
  hundred 
  years 
  ago, 
  

   there 
  being 
  a 
  very 
  good 
  specimen 
  in 
  the 
  Kirby 
  Collection. 
  

   It 
  was 
  first 
  brought 
  forward 
  as 
  British 
  by 
  Morice, 
  who 
  

   captured 
  a 
  single 
  specimen 
  in 
  Dorset, 
  and 
  soon 
  afterwards 
  

  

  