Bug FAQFlorentine Woolcarder Bee
Anthidium florentinum · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Megachilidae
Also called: Florentine Wool-carder Bee
The Florentine woolcarder bee is a medium-to-large solitary bee; females are smaller than the larger males. Both sexes have a black abdomen with two yellow bands on each segment, and males show grey-white hairs on the sides of the abdomen. They nest in crevices or in abandoned nests of other insects, lining the cells with chewed plant fibres.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Both sexes have a black abdomen with two yellow bands on each tergite. Males can be told apart by grey-white hairs on the sides of the abdomen.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Females are smaller than the larger males.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They build nests in crevices or in abandoned nests of other insects. The nest cells are lined with chewed plant fibres.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
In studied populations, females outnumber males and males are larger than females. Both sexes are active and fly at the same time of year.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
The sexes fly during the same season.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is one of several European wool-carder bees. It belongs to the group of European wool-carder bees.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 1 of 51 states and DC. Most records: New York.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in North America; introduced in Canada; introduced in United States. Source: iNaturalist
More photos
Questions people ask
When are Florentine woolcarder bees active?
Both males and females fly during the same season of the year.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I tell a male from a female?
Males have grey-white hairs on the sides of the abdomen, while females lack these hairs.
Source: Wikipedia
Where does this bee build its nest?
It nests in crevices or in abandoned nests of other insects, lining the cells with chewed plant fibres.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Megachilidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthidium_florentinum
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.