What does the cryptic crossword clue "… reportedly an earlier insect, perhaps? (5)" mean?

The definition is "perhap". The wordplay uses a homophone (sounds like). sounds like (“reportedly”): ‘May bee’, which would be an insect earlier in the year than JUNE BUG (linking back to the previous clue/solution) The answer is MAYBE.

… reportedly an earlier insect, perhaps? (5)

Guardian Cryptic #29188 | 9 Across | 2023-09-29 flower

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