Black bee ID

[wd]

Wondering if anyone might be able to identify this bee?

[fermentedhiker]

can you get a head shot?  Maybe a good view of the mouth parts?

[AllenF]

I don't know much about the west coast, but if I saw that around here, I would think what is that crazy drone honey bee doing.

[wd]

mouth parts and a drone? ... gotcha

[RayMarler]

No way is that a drone honeybee. Drones have fuzzy rounded butts with wings that extend to the butt.
Looks more like a virgin queen to me. Looks rather dead at that.

[Scadsobees]

I bet if you spent about 30 minutes on www.bugguide.net you'd find it!

Not a drone, not a queen.  There are flies that mimic bees closely, but this one has double wings and the legs are angular like a bee to hold pollen.  Could be a black type honeybee that is older and lost some hair, but I'd say it is more likely to be some type of solitary bee.

[wd]

Thanks to all for the comments. I guess in a way, the question is kind of like looking for a needle in a hay stack. didn't look like a drone to me .. I thought perhaps a Caucasian bee but I'm not sure. a queen crossed my mind but why does it appear to be collecting pollen? .. a solitary bee never registered. Thank you for the link, I'll take a look  

I'll will try to get some better shots of this black bee, in the mean time, this is what I have



some other visitors



as described above, drones as I know them

[Irwin]

Grab it and see if will sting you that mite help narrow down your hunt.  :-D

[wd]

On second thought, I think I ought let this question go. I'll try and find out another way.

[Scadsobees]

Yes, it could be a Carniolan or perhaps Russian, there are several black type bees.

[wd]

Yes, it could be a Carniolan or perhaps Russian, there are several black type bees.

... yessirooni ...

adding a few more pictures, nothing more.

[fermentedhiker]

another good site for insect identification

http://www.whatsthatbug.com/

[Scadsobees]

Yeah, those new pics show it is definitely a honey bee of some sort.

Aside from pictures, I think the only way to figure out what type of black bee, carniolan, russian, german, is through hive behavior and characteristics.  Temperament, swarming, propolis gathering, buildup, etc.

[wd]