Some photographs of Chelostoma philadelphi, the most common guest at my mason bee hotel in past years. Approximately 7 mm in length and all black unless covered in pollen. Seems to prefer nest holes that are 1/8″ in diameter. In looking at photographs online they seem to show up on a variety of flowers (perhaps with preference for asters), but females are reported (Sedivy et al. 2008) to collect only Philadelphus pollen for use in nest provisions for her brood.
I gave a Zoom lecture last night on why people should care about native bees, and promised the audience (friends of Belmont Hills Library, in Bala Cynwyd, PA) that I’d share some links, photographs, and answers to some of the questions at the end. If you have any lingering questions or thoughts, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Good luck attracting bees, and thanks again for the invitation.
For more photographs of bees (and wasps), my full collection is on SmugMug.
#BeeBest