Author: Latreille, 1803

Type species: Apis pilipes Fabricius, 1775 = Apis plumipes Pallas, 1772, designated by Commission Opinion 151, 1944.
Subgenera: Anthophora s.str Latreille, 1803;  Caranthophora Brooks, 1988; Clisodon Patton, 1879; Dasymegilla Brooks, 1988; Heliophila, Klug 1807; Lophanthophora Brooks, 1988; Melea Sandhouse, 1943; Mystacanthophora Brooks, 1988; Paramegilla Friese 1897; Petalosternon Brooks, 1988; Pyganthophora Brooks, 1988
Synonyms: Podalirius Latreille, 1802; Lasius Panzer, 1804; Megilla Fabricius, 1804; Saropoda Latreille, 1809; Micranthophora Cockerell, 1906; Solamegilla Marikovskaya, 1980.
Clade: Anthophila
Family: Apidae
SubF: Anthophorinae
Tribe: Anthophorini
Distinctive traits
  • Stout species, with protuberant clypeus and short antennae
  • Short marginal cell
  • 3 submarginal cell of equivalent size
  • 2nd recurrent vein reaching the middle of submarginal cell 2
  • Arolium present between the claws
Pictures of distinctive traits.
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Morphologically close genera and how to distinguish them:
  • Anthophora - Amegilla
Anthophora species tend to be larger and have an arolium between the claws.
Amegilla species stend to be smaller with well delimited hairs bands on the metasoma, and lack the arolium.
  • Anthophora - Habropoda
Anthophora species have a distinctly short marginal cell, as well as recurrent veins reaching the middle of submarginal cell 2 and an interfurcal nervulus.
Habropoda species have a more elongated tip of marginal cell (the apex of the anterior margin of submarginal cell 3 reaches only the middle of the marginal cell), a recurrent vein reaching the apex of submarginal cell 2 and a post-furcal nervulus.
  • Anthophora - Bombus
Anthophora species have non-aligned ocelli, often bear yellow-markings on the face and have no vein half-crossing the 1st submarginal cell.
Bombus species have aligned ocelli, never bear yellow-markings on the face and have a vein half-crossing the 1st submarginal cell.
General comments on Anthophora species identification
Anthophora females can be distinguished using criteria from hairs colour patterns and punctation. Some of the males identification criteria are facial yellow patterns, shape of posterior legs, hairs of the median legs, and may require genitalia comparisons.
Sorry, but the species identification tool is not yet available for Anthophora. 
Please check the reference(s) at the bottom of the page for traditional keys.
List of the 78 Anthophora species found in Europe (UICN 2014 + Rasmont et al. 2017)

Anthophora (Anthophora) canescens Brullé, 1832
Anthophora (Anthophora) crinipes Smith, 1854
Anthophora (Anthophora) fulvitarsis Brullé, 1832
Anthophora (Anthophora) lanata (Klug, 1845)
Anthophora (Anthophora) plumipes (Pallas, 1772)
Anthophora (Anthophora) punctilabris Pérez, 1879
Anthophora (Anthophora) senescens Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Caranthophora) dufourii Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Caranthophora) pubescens (Fabricius, 1781)
Anthophora (Clisodon) furcata (Panzer, 1798)
Anthophora (Dasymegilla) quadrimaculata (Panzer, 1798)
Anthophora (Heliophila) bimaculata (Panzer, 1798)
Anthophora (Heliophila) fulvodimidiata Dours, 1869
Anthophora (Heliophila) lanzarotensis (Tkalcu, 1993)
Anthophora (Heliophila) lieftincki (Tkalcu, 1993)
Anthophora (Heliophila) pulverosa Smith, 1854
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) affinis Brullé, 1832
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) agama Radoszkowski, 1869
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) cinerascens Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) dispar Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) hispanica (Fabricius, 1787)
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) mucida Gribodo, 1873
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) robusta (Klug, 1845)
Anthophora (Lophanthophora) rutilans Dours, 1869
Anthophora (Melea) plagiata (Illiger, 1806)
Anthophora (Mystacanthophora) borealis Morawitz, 1864
Anthophora (Paramegilla) astragali Morawitz, 1878
Anthophora (Paramegilla) balneorum Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Paramegilla) deserticola Morawitz, 1873
Anthophora (Paramegilla) dubia Eversmann, 1852
Anthophora (Paramegilla) femorata (Olivier, 1789)
Anthophora (Paramegilla) ferruginea Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Paramegilla) fulvipes Eversmann, 1846
Anthophora (Paramegilla) gallica Dalla Torre & Friese, 1895
Anthophora (Paramegilla) gracilipes Morawitz, 1873
Anthophora (Paramegilla) harmalae Morawitz, 1878
Anthophora (Paramegilla) ireos (Pallas, 1773)
Anthophora (Paramegilla) larvata Giraud, 1863
Anthophora (Paramegilla) nigrovittata Dours, 1869
Anthophora (Paramegilla) podagra Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Paramegilla) ponomarevae Brooks, 1988
Anthophora (Paramegilla) quadricolor (Erichson, 1840)
Anthophora (Paramegilla) socia (Klug, 1845)



Anthophora (Petalosternon) calcarata Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Petalosternon) crassipes Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Petalosternon) orotavae (Saunders, 1904)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) aestivalis (Panzer, 1801)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) albosignata (Friese, 1896)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) alluaudi Pérez, 1902
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) altaica Radoszkowski, 1882
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) andalusica Pérez, 1902
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) atriceps Pérez, 1879
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) atroalba Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) balearica (Friese, 1896)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) cincreus (Friese, 1896)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) dalmatica Pérez, 1902
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) erschowi Fedtschenko, 1875
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) leucophaea Pérez, 1879
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) monacha (Erichson, 1849)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) nigriceps Morawitz, 1886
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) orientalis Morawitz, 1877
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) pedata Eversmann, 1852
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) pruinosa Smith, 1854
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) retusa (Linnaeus, 1758)
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) rogenhoferi Morawitz, 1872
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) romandii Dours, 1869
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) rubricrus Dours, 1873
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) senicula Pérez, 1902
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) senilis Eversmann, 1846
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) sichelii Radoszkowski, 1869
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) testaceipes Morawitz, 1888
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) thomsoni Saunders, 1882
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) ventilabris Lepeletier, 1841
Anthophora (Pyganthophora) vernalis Morawitz, 1878
Anthophora (incertae sedis) laevigata Spinola, 1808
Anthophora (incertae sedis) porphyrea Westrich, 1993
Anthophora (incertae sedis) purpuraria Westrich, 1993
Anthophora (incertae sedis) uniciliata Sichel, 1860
References with identification keys for some of the species:
  • Friese H. 1897. Die Bienen Europa’s (Apidae europaeae). Theil III. Solitäre Apiden. Genus Podalirius. Berlin, 316 p.
  • Osychnyuk A.Z. 1978. Clef de détermination des insectes de la partie européenne d’URSS, Tome III. Hyménoptères. Première partie. Traduction partielle: Superfamille Apoidea (apoïdes). Anthophoridae. Mémoire de fin d’études, Université de Mons-Hainaut, Ecole d’Interprètes Internationaux, 100 pp.
  • Herrero Hernandez J. & C.Pérez-Inigo Mora, 1985. Las especies espanolas del género Anthophora (Hym., Apoidea). EOS, Madrid, 61 : 107-145.
  • Brooks R.W. 1988. Systematics and Phylogeny of the Anthophorine Bees (Hymenoptera : Anthophoridae ; Anthophorini). The University of Kansas Science Bulletin, 53 (9) : 436-575.
  • Rasmont P. 1995. Les Anthophores de France du sous-genre Lophanthophora Brooks avec la redescription de trois espèces au statut confus (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Anthophoridae). Annales de la Société entomologique de France n.s., 31(1) : 3-20.
  • Amiet, F., Herrmann, M., Müller, A., & Neumeyer, R. (2007). Apidae 5: Ammobates, Ammobatoides, Anthophora, Biastes, Ceratina, Dasypoda, Epeoloides, Epeolus, Eucera, Macropis, Melecta, Melitta, Nomada, Pasites, Tetralonia, Thyreus, Xylocopa (Vol. 5). Centre suisse de cartographie de la faune.
  • Falk S.J. (2015) Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland. Bloomsbury wildlife guides. 432 p.
Online resources:
Atlas hymenoptera (Europe & Belgium)
BWARS (UK)
Discover Life (World)
WestPalBees (West Palearctic)
Page contributors:
  • Adrien Perrard (Dec. 2019)

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References used to write this page:
  • Bossert, S., E. Murray, E.A.B. Almeida, S. Brady, B. Blaimer, B.N. Danforth (2018). Combining transcriptomes and ultraconserved elements to illuminate the phylogeny of Apidae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 130 (2019): 121–131
  • Michener, C.D. 2007. The Bees of the World, 2nd Edition. The John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
  • Michez D., Rasmont P., Terzo, M., Vereecken, N. 2019. Abeilles d'Europes. Hymenoptères d'Europes, Volume 1. N.A.P. Editions.
  • Nieto, A., Roberts, S. P., Kemp, J., Rasmont, P., Kuhlmann, M., García Criado, M., ... & Michez, D. 2014. European red list of bees. Luxembourg: Publication Office of the European Union, 98.
  •  Rasmont, P., Devalez, Jelle, Pauly, A., Michez, D. & Radchenko, V.G. 2017. Addition to the checklist of IUCN European wild bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Annales de la Société entomologique de France 53: 17-32.