A RARE SPECIES of bee has been spotted in Ireland for the first time in 26 years.

The critically-endangered Silver-sided Nomad bee was seen in Co Offaly by net-sweeping Devil’s-bit Scabious, which are flowering plants that attract the species.

The National Biodiversity Data Centre said it’s a rare sighting, as there are just seven confirmed historic records of the bee on the island of Ireland. This is the first time it’s been seen in Co Offaly. It was previously seen in counties Galway, Laois and Carlow.

The bee was rediscovered by Joshua Clarke, who is the rare species pollinator officer for the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan.

Silver-sided Nomad Bees fly between mid-July to mid-September.

They are ‘cleptoparasites’ meaning that, similar to a Cuckoo bird, they lay their eggs in the nest of a host species. Their larva then steals host resources, such as collected pollen, to complete development.

The host species for the Silver-sided Nomad Bee is the solitary Small Scabious Mining Bee (Andrena marginata), which is also critically endangered.

Both species like dry calcareous grasslands, heaths, and stabilised coastal dunes. They’re found in low densities, making them challenging to survey. Their habitats are under threat from factors including intensive agriculture and scrub encroachment.