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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
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photo copyright of Tristan Bantock Nomada lathburnia (photo by Tristan Bantock)

Molly Rightmyer, Postdoctoral Fellow

As of 30 March 2009,
Molly is at the USDA Bee Lab in Logan, Utah, working on a revision of the Nearctic Osmia with Terry Griswold.

We wish her the best.

  • E-mail Address:   molly_rightmyer@yahoo.com

  • Education:
    BA Biology, Scripps College
    PhD Entomology, U of Kansas

     

 Molly Rightmyer

Research Interests:

  • Systematics, biology, and evolution of bees
  • Cleptoparasitism in bees
  • Pollinator conservation

My work primarily focuses on the evolutionary history and taxonomy of cleptoparasitic bees.  Cleptoparasitic bees are analogous to the more familiar cuckoo birds or cowbirds; unlike most bees, the females do not forage for pollen and nectar to feed their young, and instead they sneak their eggs into the nests of other bee species.  Cleptoparasitic bees steal the maternal resources provided by species of provisioning bees, often resulting in the death of the other bee species’ offspring.  Cleptoparasitic bees often occur in lower numbers than provisioning bees and the specific details of their life history strategies are less well known than many other bee groups (although much more is yet to be learned about the nesting behaviors of most bee species).  However, from what we do know, it appears that many cleptoparasitic bees are restricted to laying their eggs in the nests of only one or a few “host” species of provisioning bees.  In addition to systematic and taxonomic work, my research program will use the reciprocal phylogenies of parasite and host bees to study patterns of coevolution and rates of molecular evolution.

Selected Publications:

Rightmyer, M. G. (2008) A review of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Triepeolus (Hymenoptera: Apidae). - Part 1. Zootaxa. 1710: 1-170. pdf

Rightmyer, M. G. (2004) Phylogeny and classification of the parasitic bee tribe Epeolini (Hymenoptera: Apidae, Nomadinae). Scientific Papers Natural History Museum the University of Kansas. 33:1-51.

Engel, M. S., Michener, C. D. and Rightmyer, M. G. (2004) The cleptoparasitic bee tribe Rhathymini (Hymenoptera: Apidae): description of a new genus and a tribal review. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 13(1):1-12.

Engel, M. S., Michener, C. D. and Rightmyer, M. G. (2004) A replacement name for the cleptoparasitic bee genus Rhathymodes (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research 13(2):316.

Rightmyer, M. G. (2004) Redescription of two East Asian species of the tribe Epeolini (Hymenoptera: Apidae; Nomadinae). Entomological Science 7(3):251–262.

Rightmyer, M. G. (2003) A New Species of the Bee Genus Rhogepeolus Moure from Peru (Hymenoptera: apidae). Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 76(2):290-294.

Engel, M. S. and Rightmyer, M. G. (2003) Jerome G. Rozen, Jr.: a biographical sketch and summary of scientific contributions. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 76(2):84-91.

Rightmyer, M. G. and Engel, M. S. (2003) A new Palaearctic genus of melectine bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae). American Museum Novitates 3392:1-22. pdf

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