Bug FAQTexas Leafcutter Bee
Megachile texana · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Megachilidae
Also called: Texas Leaf-cutter Bee, Texas Leafcutter
Female Texas leafcutter bees are 11 to 13 mm long and males are 10 to 12 mm. They nest in pastures, often under rocks, earth clods, or on small hillocks, sometimes excavating their own cavities. Each cell is provisioned with pollen and nectar for a single egg, and the larva later pupates in a cocoon lined with brownish threads.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Females measure 11 to 13 mm (0.43 to 0.51 in) and males 10 to 12 mm (0.39 to 0.47 in).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Nests are often found in pastures, with entrances under rocks, earth clods, or on small hillocks. Females may use existing cavities or dig their own nests.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Each brood cell is half-filled with a pollen-nectar mixture on which an egg is laid. The larva feeds on this stored food until it pupates.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The larva consumes its food supply, then becomes an inactive prepupa inside a cocoon that fills the cell. The cocoon’s outer surface is wrapped with brownish threads.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Each cell is half-filled with a pollen-nectar mixture and an egg is laid on it. The larva later becomes a prepupa inside a cocoon that fills the cell.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 46 of 51 states and DC. Most records: New York, Utah, California, Florida, Michigan, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How big are Texas leafcutter bees?
Females are 11 to 13 mm long and males are 10 to 12 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
What do they look like?
They have short, dense whitish hair on the head and thorax, semi-transparent wings with black veins, and an abdomen striped in black and yellow-white.
Source: Wikipedia
Where do they nest?
They often nest in pastures, entering under rocks, earth clods, or on small hillocks, and may excavate their own cavities or use existing ones.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the larvae eat?
The larvae feed on a mixture of pollen and nectar that was placed in the cell with the egg.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Megachilidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachile_texana
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.