Melissodes lupina,m,face,Lincoln Co, WY
There are many species of Melissodes and as you can see from this male, they aren't called Long-horn Bees for nothing. All or almost all of these species are summer to fall bees and most are fond to very fond of flowers in the Asteraceae family ... the fall composites by other names. Flowers of this group have the most bee specialists (at least in the East) of any plant family. Why, its not clear, but the family does seem to have consistancy in that the plants are perennials primarily and show up in the same places year after year, on the other hand, they are also characterized in the literature as having low protein content and lots of nasty secondary plant compounds that can be toxic to some baby bees. Maybe it is this toxicity that makes the specialist bee. This bee comes from Fossil Butte National Monument. A fantastic place for bees as well as fossils. Original public domain image from Flickr