Across much of the Palaearctic, from Europe through temperate Asia, with distribution varying by subspecies and habitat.
Fine-art photographic collection
Andrena vaga
A willow specialist that can turn bare sand into a city of ten thousand nests.
About this species
Grey-backed Mining Bee
Andrena vagaPanzer, 1799
Information reviewed15 July 2026
Andrena vaga is an early-spring mining bee tightly linked to willow pollen. Females excavate deep nests in sandy ground, often forming enormous aggregations that appear almost like a temporary bee metropolis.
Taxonomy
Animalia · Arthropoda · Insecta · Hymenoptera · Andrenidae · Andrena
Accepted species or infraspecific taxon in the current GBIF/Catalogue of Life treatment; unsupported details have been omitted rather than inferred. · checked 2026-07-15
Palaearctic regionBroad documented range and selected occurrence localities — not a complete occurrence map.
Open or semi-open flower-rich habitat with suitable soil for nesting; exact preferences vary across the species range.
Seasonal and diurnal; the precise flight period varies with latitude and climate.
Adults take nectar; females collect pollen to provision brood cells.
Solitary ground-nesting bee; several females may nest close together.
What makes this species remarkable?
Some nesting grounds contain hundreds to more than ten thousand burrows packed into the same patch of open sand.
The main shaft can descend roughly 25–60 centimetres before branching into several pollen-filled brood cells.
Stylops parasites can live inside the adult bee and alter its emergence timing; individual bees have been recorded carrying several parasites.
Sources and scientific references
More photographs
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