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Flight range/distance of Panurginus sp. in yard—primary host plant died #866917

Asked May 03, 2024, 2:30 PM EDT

I'm trying to figure out if I need to run out and buy the biggest Ceanothus (or two) I can find because our giant bush died and it was the primary host plant for the Panurginus bees in our yard. They're so small that I'm worried there aren't any Ceanothus within their flight range; I've read that smaller bees they might only travel ≤500 feet max from their nest sites and the next closest Ceanothus is probably ≥1000 feet away. It's taken 7–8 years but we've attracted/developed a sizable population of these cute little bees so they're a reliable annual occurrence. They DO visit other plants, but the Ceanothus was very definitely their favorite; nearly all of my confirmed IDs on BugGuide were taken on or collected from the Ceanothus: https://bugguide.net/node/view/1529208 https://bugguide.net/node/view/1224376 https://bugguide.net/node/view/1374603 Any advice would be welcome, thank you!

Multnomah County Oregon

Expert Response

Hello,
I passed your question by one of my Master Gardeners who volunteers with the Oregon Bee Atlas and is an expert in native bees. This is what he said:



"The short answer to your question is no - you do not need to immediately buy a large ceanothus to replace the one you lost. There are specialist bees that rely on a certain plants
or set of plants for their pollen. This pollen is fed to their offspring. As
far as nectar goes, even the specialist bees will seek that out on many
different plants. In the case of our Panurginus, none of them rely on
Ceanothus. That being said, it is a favorite of many generalist bees because it
provides a lot of resources.


I suspect that the bee in your photo is Panurginus atriceps which is
not a specialist and will visit many species of plants including dandelions. It
you want to see a list of plants that it has been associated with, scroll down
to the bottom of this page for hosts: https://www.discoverlife.org/20/q?search=Panurginus+atriceps


Spoiler alert, you will find Ceanothus on that list.


Feel free to go and buy another Ceanothus but you do not need
to panic."


Thank you for using Ask Extension!
An Ask Extension Expert Replied May 09, 2024, 4:47 PM EDT

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