Eufriesea surinamensis are characterized by their long tongue and yellow hindtibial posterior fringe.

The forehead and thorax are black with a colorful, metallic face; the labrum is also rounded.

surinamensis can be distinguished from other euglossine species by the knob above their hindtibial spurs and by the darkened medial cell in their wings.

[1][3] Female bees construct aggregated nests of varying sizes out of mud, bark, and resin.

[1][3][5] Though females nest in aggregations, this is due more to lack of suitable locations than any social interactions.

This activity of this bee species is restricted during the late spring and summer months, as was observed in the Atlantic Forest region.

Specifically, the unique climate of each area largely determines the composition of the bee community, since environmental variations affect pollen and nectar source locations as well as nesting places.

[9] Females make two types of foraging trips: to collect pollen or nesting materials.

Developing young grow quickly and spend most of the wet season in larval diapause, a delay in development so that the juveniles can emerge into the optimal environment to begin creating their own nests and repeating the cycle.

It also has the added benefit of decreasing the time required for nest completion and allowing females to put more resources into laying more eggs.

In 2005, Thomas Eltz and his research group discovered that male Eufriesea will release different aromatic compounds using complex leg maneuvers, giving credence to the hypothesis that these compounds play a role in mating, though they may have multiple uses.

surinamensis males have a marked preference for the compound vanillin, compared to 1.8 cineole and eugenol.

[11] Given their large ranges, it is thought that bees of the euglossine tribe trapline for more efficient foraging.

Traplining occurs when an insect will visit a series of flowers in a stable, repeatable sequence.

Traplining gives the bee an advantage in that they have a series of flowers they can visit to gain nectar.

surinamensis and other orchid bees are major players in flora gene flow, and are vital to the continued health of tropical forests.

Also, as only one generation exists at a time, there are no worker bees with a vested interest in more sisters so the sex ratio is about 1:1.

Among the genus Eufriesea, females have evolved Müllerian mimetic complexes, making it difficult to distinguish between the species in the surinamensis group.

Adults drink nectar, and females collect pollen for larvae to feed on during development.

surinamensis parasitized by other species, but they also take advantage of empty nests to lay their eggs.

surinamensis is responsible for pollinating a wide variety of orchids and other flora in neotropical regions.

[1] Thanks to their long flight ranges, these bees are crucial for the continued reproduction of scattered and uncommon flora throughout tropical forests.

Thus deforestation and fragmentation of their habitats not only jeopardizes these bees, but also the entire surrounding ecosystem.