One of the ‘mini’miners’, this is a small black species with few obvious distinguishing features. The females possess a dull orange terminal fringe and weak bands of white hair on the tergites when fresh, but these can fade. It is one of the Aciandrena and females possess strong striations on the face, which can be a useful clue. The propodeum is rather smooth, the foveae are narrow and the clypeus is dull and flat with only a few shallow and obscure punctures. It is however, a difficult species to identify and both males and females should be determined using a microscope.
Disitribution: A western and central Mediterranean species, which in Europe occurs throughout Spain and Portugal, southern France, Corsica, the Balearic Islands and Sicily. It is also found in Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Tunisia.
Flight Period: Bivoltine, appearing from March until August.
Habitat: Poorly known, but it has been recorded in maquis, scrubby habitats and around cultivated areas.
Flowers Visited: The spring brood forages primarily on crucifers (Brassicaceae), whilst the summer brood forages mainly on umbellifers (Apiaceae), but neither brood shows strict preferences and both will forage on Brassicaeae and Apiaceae where available.
Personal Records: I have recorded this species once; a female in an area of maquis scrub outside the village of Querenca.