In spring a number of superfast silver flashes were dashing around Common mallow. They rarely took a break from chasing eachother which made it difficult to get a photograph. When one finally sat down for a moment I managed to quickly snap a phote. Unfortunately its not good but good enough to determine the bees identity: the Sandpit mining bee (Andrena barbilabris) [1,2,3].
It is a male. The species is recognisable from the white hairs and bands on the abdomen [2,3].
It is the first time I’ve observed this species, a new garden species!
UPDATE 2020
Two males are active this year. They are fast and continuously moving. every now and then a break is taken which gives a window of opportunity for taking photo.
They are mostly found flying just above the plant tops and the breaks are often taken on sunny ivy leaves.
Literature
1 Nederlands Soortenregister2 Peeters, T.M.J., H. Nieuwenhuijsen, J. Smit, F. van der Meer, I.P. Raemakers, W.R.B. Heitmans, C. van Achterberg, M. Kwak, A.J. Loonstra, J. de Rond, M. Roos & M. Reemer, 2012. De Nederlands bijen (Hymennoptera: Apidae s.l.). - Natuur van Nederland 11, Naturalis Biodiversity Center & European Invertebrate Survey - Nederland, Leiden.
3 wildebijen.nl, "De Nederlandse bijen en hun relaties, overzicht van in Nederland en Vlaanderen voorkomende solitaire en sociale bijen (Apidea s.l.)"
