Reprinted with permission from: Mitchell, T.B. 1962 Bees of the Eastern United States. North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin No. 152.
FEMALE—Length 8 mm.; entirely black, face slightly longer than distance between eyes above; eyes very slightly convergent below; lateral ocelli subequally distant from margin of vertex and each other, very slightly more distant from eyes; clypeus slightly convex, apical margin broadly produced, this area nearly straight and with a shining, impunctate margin; mandibles only slightly broadened apically, tri-dentate, median tooth subapical position; cheeks considerably broader than eyes; wings very lightly infuscated, veins and stigma brownish-piceous; tegulae piceous, shining, with minute, scattered punctures; legs entirely black, front spurs testaceoushyaline, mid and hind spurs piceous to black; pubescence entirely pale, rather short but copious over most of head and thorax, rather thin on vertex and on dorsum of thorax; abdominal terga 1-4 with quite dense, whitish, apical fasciae, these rather widely interrupted 1 and 2, 5 not definitely fasciate, discal pubescence extremely short, hardly evident on the more basal terga, becoming more definite and conspicous on the more apical terga, with a quite abrupt, apical lip, almost at right angles to the more basal portion of the disc; scopa whitish; punctures deep and distinct over most of head and thorax, quite close general, but with evident intervening spaces on dorsum of thorax which is shining, very close but not crowded over most of face above, cheeks and pleura, quite coarse over most of clypeus above, but becoming finer and densely crowded toward apical margin; abdominal terga shining, basal tergum with very fine and well separated punctures medially, becoming fine and close laterally, those on and 3 rather fine and well separated medially, coarser and closer on 4, those on 5 almost crowded, surface not so shining, and 6 with fine, densely crowded punctures throughout.
MALE—Length 6-7 mm.; entirely black; face only slightly longer than distance between eyes above; eyes slightly convergent below; antennal scape robust but not dilated apically, apex excavated and almost completely enclosing pedicel, the more apical flagellar segments much broader than long, apical segment elongate, tapering and slightly curved; lateral ocelli subequally distant from margin vertex and each other, slightly more distant from eyes; clypeus slightly convex, apical margin only slightly produced, nearly straight, margin narrowly shining and impunctate; mandibles bi-dentate; cheeks subequal to eyes width; wings subhyaline, veins and stigma brownish-testaceous; tegulae shining, piceous, with scattered, fine punctures; legs entirely black, front spurs pale testaceous, mid and hind spurs somewhat more brownish; abdominal tergum 7 broad at base, narrowly produced apically to a spine-like tip, with a narrow, sub-basal excavation; sterna 1-5 exposed, produced below into a rather acute, robust prominance, 3 and 4 somewhat rounded apically, each with a subapical, slightly elevated ridge, 6-8 retracted, form as shown (fig. 24); genital armature as shown; pubescence entirely pale, rather long and copious over most of head and thorax, being very dense around antennae and on face below, quite long and copious on cheeks below and over most pleura and propodeum, quite dense and elongate on front and mid femora posteriorly; abdominal terga 1-4 with narrow, white, apical fasciae, these widely interrupted medially 1 and 2, usually entire on 3-5, 6 not fasciate, discal pubescence extremely short and thin the more basal terga, becoming more evident on the more apical terga; punctures quite deep and distinct, close and rather fine over most of head and thorax, crowded beneath pubescence on face below antennae, more distinct but close on vertex and over most of dorsum of thorax, but slightly more widely separated on scutellum medially, distinctly but not widely separated on upper part of pleura, the propodeum rather dull and tessellate, punctures shallow and obscure but very fine and close; abdominal terga shining, punctures well separated medially but not sparse on 1-3, becoming almost crowded at extreme sides, rather coarse on 2-4, almost crowded on 5-7.
DISTRIBUTION — California to Quebec and Maine, south to Georgia and Texas, April to August.
FLOWER RECORDS — Apocynurn, Azalea, Baptisia, Bar barea, Chrysanthemum, Melilotus, Potentilla, Rubus, Salix and Trifolium. The occurrence of several subspecies in the West make this subspecific designation of producta necessary.
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