mixture to be pushed down and packed into the cell. Other materials like mud, feces, and resin are deposited in the nest. Mud and feces can be found deposited on the floor of the nest, while resin is stuck onto a cavity wall near the pedicel. While the actual size of the nest cavity varied in the study conducted by Cameron and Ramirez, the brood cells of all the nests studied were uniform in size, shape, and structure. The cell structures were also similar to the cells built by other Eulaema species. Colonies Eulaema meriana typically begin nests alone, and they remain solitary. Occasionally they form parasocial colonies with two or more females that are from the same generation and may even be sisters. Females work inside the nest at night, constructing cells and ovipositing. One egg is laid in each provisioned cell, and oviposition occurs after the provisions are tamped into the cell. Egg laying happens quickly as the female backs into the cell, holding the collar with her forelegs and inserting her posterior end into the cell. After laying the egg, the female pushes the resin collar in and spends a few hours covering the cell with mud. After this, the female begins to work on building a new brood cell. Larger nests can have multiple females. Females may use the same site over many generations and continuously build upon the nest. In one large nest studied in Ecuador consisting of 76 cells, two females were found together in the nest for at least 17 days. One of the females carried pollen nectar loads on her corbicula and deposited it into the only open cell. A second female carried mud, covering dead females with mud and working on the nest construction. This suggests some level of social plasticity among these solitary bees. For single female nests, each cluster of cells represents the reproductive output for one female. One female on average will construct and oviposit over four or five brood cells before disappearing and leaving the nest. Egg development is rather long, with adults observed to be emerging 100–165 days after oviposition. Pollination As in other species of orchid bee, both the male and female visit flowers to feed on nectar. Besides this, the male has a mutualistic relationship with one or more species of orchid. To persuade the male to visit its flowers, the orchid produces fragrances