Scientists discover new bee species hooked on a Texas native plant

Silas Bossert, assistant professor in the WSU Department of Entomology, holds a pinned specimen of the new bee species that he and colleagues in Texas and Kansas worked to identify. To classify the bee, scientists performed detective work on its DNA, body parts, and use of floral resources (photo by Seth Truscott, WSU CAHNRS).

Scientists have identified a brand-new bee species with deep Texas roots—and it all revolves around one native plant.

Researchers from Washington State University found that this bee depends almost entirely on the cenizo shrub, better known around here as Texas purple sage or Texas Ranger, for its pollen. In fact, its name—cenizophila—basically means “lover of cenizo,” which tells you everything you need to know.

What makes this discovery so unique is just how specific this relationship is. This little bee doesn’t bounce from flower to flower like most—it sticks to one plant. Field studies and pollen analysis show the cenizo shrub may be its only source of food, making it one of the most specialized mining bees ever documented.

The bee was actually first collected decades ago by a Central Texas researcher, but it took years of collaboration between scientists across multiple states to officially identify and classify it as its own species.

This discovery is a reminder of just how connected Texas ecosystems really are. When one native plant thrives, entire species depend on it—and when those plants disappear, the ripple effects can be bigger than we realize.