Images

South Carolina

I believe that this specimen came from Kenya, but I could be wrong about that, will have to check with Laurence Packer and look up the barcode number. Note the cool oil collecting hairs present under the abdomen.

Tenebrionidae, found at night chewing on a small patch of shelf fungi on a stump in Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Dasymutilla gloriosa. Thistledown Velvet Ant. Elizabeth Garcia who took this picture claimed this one creeped her out. ... and she sees a lot of wasps and bees. Not an ant, but a wasp. This it the wingeless female collected by Tim McMahon in Cochise County in Arizona. Desert.

Dasypoda plumipes, Hairy-footed Hairy-legged Bee, collected in the United Kingdom.The common name of this species is an accurate description of the bushy pollen carrying hind legs of the female (male bees do not transport pollen back to a nest).

Dasypoda plumipes, Hairy-footed Hairy-legged Bee, collected in the United Kingdom.The common name of this species is an accurate description of the bushy pollen carrying hind legs of the female (male bees do not transport pollen back to a nest).

Yet another deer fly that tried to bite me while running...note the lovely dark integument or skin on this one

Yet another deer fly that tried to bite me while running...note the lovely dark integument or skin on this one nicely contrasting its lovely purple flickr eyes

Oh look, here is the female Diadasia rinconis. We featured the relatively fuzzy male recently and you can see that the branched pollen collecting hairs on this specimen have a few stray cactus pollen balls stuck in there. Such lovely bees really. Collected by Don Harvey. Someone in the lab took the picture BUT FORGOT TO FILL OUT THE SPREADSHEET, for the shots.

I think many people think of cacti as icons, something made for us to look at, but since we rarely use cacti for anything and because their fleshy shapes and lifestyles are so different we think of them more as lampposts than integrated into our landscapes as much as the grasses, forbs, and trees. But without cacti entire worlds would disappear.

Collops bipunctatus, taken from flowers in Badlands National Park, South Dakota

A tiny little bee from Arizona. Conanthalictus is usually a specialist on small low growing plants in the waterleaf family. Collected by Tim McMahon or Don Harvey on one of their expeditions to the region. Note the lovely shades of the wing coloration that pop when you use a black background.

What a little lovely parasitic wasp in the Chalcididae clan. This one appears to be Conura dema, based on picture booking from bugguide.net. I am not sure if that is true or not, but it is a very reasonable match, but I will let experts determine and validate that identification. Captured at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Dorchester County, Maryland.

Helicoverpa zea - Corn Earworm - According to Wikipedia its the second most economically damaging insect pest in North America, chewing on a wide variety of crop plants. This most certainly is true, but it also not a bad looking animal when viewed close up.

Helicoverpa zea - Corn Earworm - According to Wikipedia its the second most economically damaging insect pest in North America, chewing on a wide variety of crop plants. This most certainly is true, but it also not a bad looking animal when viewed close up.

Corynura species. Species is unknown...from Southern Chile captured while on an expedition with Laurence Packer. Photography by Anders Croft.

Cotesia congregata - a little parasite of caterpillars. This one is from Karen Kester's lab in Richmond where she and her gradstudents raise them and discover things about the host (Sphinx moths I believe) parasite relationship. Photo by Greta Forbes.

South Carolina, carolina sandhills national wildlife refuge

South Dakota, Badlands national Park

An uncommon dark Dianthidium from Florida. This one captured on the Atlantic coast in Canaveral National Seashore, Photographed by Brooke AlexanderCanon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200

A pollen laden Dianthidium parkeri from Cochise County, Arizona collected by Don Harvey. This genus is associated with drylands. A few occur in the East, but are almost entirely restricted to dry sandy soil habitats. Features here to look at, bee-wise, are the very large wing covers and the winged projections at the corners of the thorax behind the head.