Range Extension of Megachile Lanata (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae), A Non-Native Sunn Hemp Pollinator, in Florida

Abstract

Megachile lanata, a pollinator of multiple Crotalaria species, spread from North Africa to the Antilles during the 16th to 18th centuries, and is assumed to have entered Florida from Cuba in the late 1950s. This nonnative species has spread over 260 km (about 160 mi) north of previously published locations in Florida, and is now present in 12 counties. Its current northernmost record was in Sumter County during Apr 2017 at 28.935°N.