My Subgenus: Litomegachile

The difficulty of identifying and differentiating among these species justifies attention paid to the subgenus Litomegachile. M. brevis and others are often very common bees, and therefore are often encountered by researchers and collectors in the field. Most of the species have broad ranges that may overlap with other species’ ranges. By identifying material in collections and entering locality into the Bee database, the ranges for the species will be better defined. It is probable that each species has a different ecological role, in terms of which plants they visit and where they nest. There are also five subspecies which may be distinct species. I aim to revise this subgenus to determine how many species there actually are, what their life histories are, and how to tell them apart. Knowing how many species exist, and how they maintain distinct populations despite overlapping ranges will be an important advancement in the field of biogeography and the species concept.