Images

Hoplitis fulgida, female, Grand Tetons National Park, August 2010

Goldenseal. Hydrastis canadensis. Another early spring bloomer. A long history as a native medicinal plant on the continent. Helen Low Metzman collected the specimen and took the picture.

Wow, check out the expanded basal segments of this male Hylaeus basalis. Probably as big as they get in perhaps any bee in the world. Other Hylaeus have expanded segments (sexual selection?) but not like this. This bee is form Isle Royale a very large island in Superior with all sorts of interesting bees.

The female of the previous bee.

New State Record for Maryland, April 2012 Collected on Willow blooms in Somerset County....a very rarely collected bee east of the Mississippi. I don't know any recent records

Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia Pennsylvania, non-native species, collected by Stephanie Wilson

Here is a series of 6 shots of Hylaeus verticalis, 3 male, 3 female. A northern and mountain bee throughout North America. One of a bunch of different Masked Bees that lurk around the continent. Photos by Sue Boo and Brooke Alexander.

Here is a series of 6 shots of Hylaeus verticalis, 3 male, 3 female. A northern and mountain bee throughout North America. One of a bunch of different Masked Bees that lurk around the continent. Photos by Sue Boo and Brooke Alexander.

Larimer County, Colorado, Rocky Mountain National Park

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This large Hylaeus related wasp mimic is found in Australia and New Zealand. Thanks to Bernhard Jacobi for the determination. Another specimen from the vaults of the Packer Lab. 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.

Key Biscayne National Park, Florida, Ichneumonidae; Anomaloninae

Indian Cucumber Root, Medeola virginiana. I have eaten its root ...and it does taste like cucumber....you need a lot of them though, tiny. Photo and specimen by Helen Lowe Metzman.

A sand loving, ground nesting Megachile from Gateway National Recreation Area on Sandy Hook in New Jersey. Photograph by Brooke Alexander.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, link to a .pdf of our set up is located in our profile

Megachile albisecta: An European summer species found on knapweed and thistles. A beautiful and large species. Collected by Jelle Devalez in the Aegean Island of Lesvos, Greece. 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.

Now this is one handsome male. This is Megachile albitarsis, we took it long enough ago (am working through out backlog of things needing photoshopping) that I can't recall the circumstances. This large, not uncommon, southern bee has big hands. These are used to cover the female's eyes during mating. You can make up your own story as to why.

Carrying on from the recent posts of Lithurgus chrysurus, here is another European bee that specializes on Knapweed. This specimen from the West Coast, but it occurs throughout North America. Photo by Anders Croft. This bee was collected in the California Central Valley in Yolo County for research on small-scale restoration in agricultural areas.

A trinomial: Megachile brevis onobrychidis. Thus it is a declaired subspecies of M. brevis of which there have been several and at least one has turned into a species. Since the distribution of M.

I like looking at this shot, the symmetry, this alien being, this unknowable insect, there is something alive, even relatable here. This one is worth looking at full-screen. What if, indeed, this Megachile brevis, was as large as a puppy dog, would we treat it the same as we do now?

From the Adirondacks of New York comes Megachile centuncularis. Sadly, it is an invasive species that can be quite common in northern cities across the U.S. as well as throughout the northern part of the globe. Maybe that is why it is so successful, it likes our holes.