Images

Pseudagapostemon citricornis - More Chilean bees from Laurence Packer's expedition to southern Chile. Photographs by Kelly Graninger.

Epiclopis gayi - a cleptoparasitic bee (a.k.a nest parasite or cuckoo bee) of almost certainly Centris bees. Perhaps even of the Centris bee that was posted just prior to this as this bee was also collected in southern Chile on the expedition with Laurence Packer. Photos by Kelly Graniger and Anders Croft.

A lovely blue green teal spider wasp with purple highlights and infuscated wings. Collected in Southern Chile with Laurence Packer.

A little Chilicola species found on the expedition to southern Chile with Laurence Packer. A wee stem nesting bee. Photograph by Anders Croft.

Floral Design Alert. Spotted wintergreen flowers found to be aesthetically pleasing, though quite small. Check out out the units of 5 here. Five petals, 10 pantalooned stamens. Geometrically arrayed in complimentary colors ....something that clearly was created as a message of form to us in ways that make's the Da Vinci Code seem the work of novices.

An unknown bees from Anhui, Province, China. Collected by in May Michael Fizdale. Looks to me like it might be a Amegilla Anthophora. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200.

A beautiful pale white and green horse fly from North Carolina, Chlorotabanus crepuscular, a drinker of blood that comes out only at dawn and dusk, this is a southern species I had not seen before. This specimen was collected in Duck, North Carolina by Lisa Kuder. Picture taken by Ashleigh Jacobs.

A beautiful pale white and green horse fly from North Carolina, Chlorotabanus crepuscular, a drinker of blood that comes out only at dawn and dusk, this is a southern species I had not seen before. This specimen was collected in Duck, North Carolina by Lisa Kuder. Picture taken by Ashleigh Jacobs.

Choristoneura parallelaon fishhook, Upper Marlboro, July 2012

OK, we are going small, so small that the naked eye (or my naked eye) can't see these bad boys. The 20X Mitutoyo microscope objective opens up a new world. Here the mites on Bob Trumbule's mite infested Christmas Cactus come out beautifully. Too bad I have no idea what group/species they are. Note the stomata's in the picture of the nymph/larvae.

Always good for a lingering look is the glitzy Chrysidid Wasp group. I am not sure what species this is but it was found during Adirondack ATBI bioblitz this past week and was used to demonstrate the camera set up for the crowd. A nest parasite, usually of hymenoptera, one has to wonder ... why so metallic Mr. Wasp? Stack taken by Dejen Mengis.

Coelioxys hunteri, male, Jones County, Georgia

This bee, Coelioxys immaculata, is an uncommon nest parasite of other bees. Almost by definition it must be less common since the young C. immaculata usurps a cell of a leaf-cutter bee, kills the host baby bee and eats its food before emerging the next year. Note the interesting pattern of lobes on its tail end. Mysterious.

This bee, Coelioxys immaculata, is an uncommon nest parasite of other bees. Almost by definition it must be less common since the young C. immaculata usurps a cell of a leaf-cutter bee, kills the host baby bee and eats its food before emerging the next year. Note the interesting pattern of lobes on its tail end. Mysterious.

Coelioxys modesta, male, Maryland

Coelioxys....invader of Megachile nests. This female is designed to slice into Meg nests and insert and egg which later will kill the baby leaf cutter and consume the food. This one is from the Southwest, Coelioxys novomexicana. This bee was collected in the California Central Valley in Yolo County for research on small-scale restoration in agricultural areas.

Coelioxys....invader of Megachile nests. This female is designed to slice into Meg nests and insert and egg which later will kill the baby leaf cutter and consume the food. This one is from the Southwest, Coelioxys novomexicana. This bee was collected in the California Central Valley in Yolo County for research on small-scale restoration in agricultural areas.

Super rare. Only a few individuals of this species have been found, but, interestingly, this species has been found twice in Missouri, and once in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Florida. This one was sent to me by Mike Arduser and collected in Clark County, Missouri. Note the lovely flair of hairs around the end of the abdomen....very distinctive.

An invader of other bees nests, this is Coelioxys porterae, found, in this case from Acadia National Park in Maine. I can't recall which species of Megachile (leaf cutting bees) this species parasitizes us but there are plenty of options in the park. This is a male, and as with almost all males it has all kinds of pointy projections on its rear end.

Another Coelioxys nest parasite bee from the Adirondack Mountains of New York. This one is a nest parasite of big Leaf Cutters like Megachile latimanus. Here are shots of a male and a female.

Another Coelioxys nest parasite bee from the Adirondack Mountains of New York. This one is a nest parasite of big Leaf Cutters like Megachile latimanus. Here are shots of a male and a female.