i noticed small chunks were missing from the bougainvillea on my balcony. one day i caught the culprit: a small grey bee that deftly cut out little pieces from the petals and quickly flew them away. i did some research and learned she was a leafcutter bee, they are solitary bees that cut circles from plants and build individual tubular nests (tubular!) inside small nooks in trees or buildings. they are only active for about two weeks a year. after the two weeks were up my plant was left absolutely bald... i'm a bit sad to not have any pink left on my balcony but i love the idea of this stylish and talented bee with some hot pink nests for the summer.
(pics from internet)
