I was out watching my bees taking pollen from the pussy willows and I
noticed that they were not the only bee doing this.  The other bees were
distictly different from my yellow Italian honey bees.  The other bees were
about 1/3 the volume of  my bees, but generally the same shape and features
as my bees except that the entire body was black and the tail was shiny and
possibly more pointed.  The thorax was lightly covered in white or light
yellow hairs much less dense than my furry bees.

I've seen these bees other years on my property and would like to know if
they are a feral version of honey bee or some other species (genus?)
entirely.  I have only had my bees for 3 years so I really don't think that
they owe their exsistence to anything I have done.

Just curious!

Lisa K.
Zionsville, IN