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USGS Bee Lab at the Eastern Ecological Science Center images.
Centris haemorrhoidalis - The red-butted bee of Puerto Rico. Another lovely bee from the tropics, sort of a fancy bumble bee in a way. Collected by queen bee of Puerto Rico, Sara Prado. Pictures by Brooke Alexander.
Centris haemorrhoidalis - The red-butted bee of Puerto Rico. Another lovely bee from the tropics, sort of a fancy bumble bee in a way. Collected by queen bee of Puerto Rico, Sara Prado. Pictures by Brooke Alexander.
A small Centris species taken by Sara Prado in Puerto Rico
A small Centris species taken by Sara Prado in Puerto Rico
The tail ends of Centris are often brightly colored...surely there is a function, and a reason, but why does it often appear to us to also be beatutiful?Another Caribbean bee collected from Puerto Rico by Sara Prado. A lovely male. Photographed by Brooke Alexander.
The tail ends of Centris are often brightly colored...surely there is a function, and a reason, but why does it often appear to us to also be beatutiful?Another Caribbean bee collected from Puerto Rico by Sara Prado. A lovely male. Photographed by Brooke Alexander.
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.
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.
Cleaning up my backlog....the head of a very small Chrysidid Wasp...a nest parasite or cleptoparasite of other insects...often bees and wasps. Maryland. Picture taken by Brooke Alexander
Cleaning up my backlog....the head of a very small Chrysidid Wasp...a nest parasite or cleptoparasite of other insects...often bees and wasps. Maryland. Picture taken by Brooke Alexander
Another Chrysidid wasp (cuckoo wasp) from the Hart-Miller Dredge Spoil site in Baltimore Harbor, collected by Eugene Scarpulla, photographed by Brooke Alexander Identification by Lynn KimseyCanon 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 o
Another Chrysidid wasp (cuckoo wasp) from the Hart-Miller Dredge Spoil site in Baltimore Harbor, collected by Eugene Scarpulla, photographed by Brooke Alexander Identification by Lynn KimseyCanon 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 o
Another Chrysidid wasp (cuckoo wasp) from the Hart-Miller Dredge Spoil site in Baltimore Harbor, collected by Eugene Scarpulla, photographed by Brooke Alexander Identification by Lynn KimseyCanon 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 o
Another Chrysidid wasp (cuckoo wasp) from the Hart-Miller Dredge Spoil site in Baltimore Harbor, collected by Eugene Scarpulla, photographed by Brooke Alexander Identification by Lynn KimseyCanon 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 o
Golden-backed Snipe Fly, Collected by Francisco Posada, Laurel, Maryland
Golden-backed Snipe Fly, Collected by Francisco Posada, Laurel, Maryland
Colletes productus - Lover of Lyonia. Lyonia = obscure shrub aka fetterbush/staggerbush/maleberry. There are a lot of obscure relationships out there. Here is a specialist bee dependent on an reasonably lovely ericaceous shrub. No Lyonia no C. productus and several other bees. Who speaks for Lyonia though? Can we plant our way back to native bee health.
Colletes productus - Lover of Lyonia. Lyonia = obscure shrub aka fetterbush/staggerbush/maleberry. There are a lot of obscure relationships out there. Here is a specialist bee dependent on an reasonably lovely ericaceous shrub. No Lyonia no C. productus and several other bees. Who speaks for Lyonia though? Can we plant our way back to native bee health.
Colletes productus - Lover of Lyonia. Lyonia = obscure shrub aka fetterbush/staggerbush/maleberry. There are a lot of obscure relationships out there. Here is a specialist bee dependent on an reasonably lovely ericaceous shrub. No Lyonia no C. productus and several other bees. Who speaks for Lyonia though? Can we plant our way back to native bee health.
Colletes productus - Lover of Lyonia. Lyonia = obscure shrub aka fetterbush/staggerbush/maleberry. There are a lot of obscure relationships out there. Here is a specialist bee dependent on an reasonably lovely ericaceous shrub. No Lyonia no C. productus and several other bees. Who speaks for Lyonia though? Can we plant our way back to native bee health.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
A little series of pictures of Colletes robertsonii from the Sandhills of Nebraska...Hooker county. A Midwestern species, this male and female were found in a nice patch of flowers along the road in a small pull off. Lovely country...the Sandhills. Photos by Erick Hernandez.
Colletes thoracicus. One of the cellophane bees. Aggregates in large numbers in loose soil or cliff faces. Photographer is Greta Forbes.
Colletes thoracicus. One of the cellophane bees. Aggregates in large numbers in loose soil or cliff faces. Photographer is Greta Forbes.
A blueberry specialist. Look how long that face is...The space between the mandible and the eye is what bee heads often use to separate species. This Colletes validus has a huggggggeeee malar space...other Colletes species essentially have none, the mandible being directly at the base of the eye. Why?
A blueberry specialist. Look how long that face is...The space between the mandible and the eye is what bee heads often use to separate species. This Colletes validus has a huggggggeeee malar space...other Colletes species essentially have none, the mandible being directly at the base of the eye. Why?
Look at the veryyyyyyy long distance from the bottom of the compound eye to the mandible base (technically this is called the malar space). Few bees show this long a head and it is nearly distinctive within Colletes at least in the north. This is a species that likes to hang out around blueberries and other Vaccinium type things.
Look at the veryyyyyyy long distance from the bottom of the compound eye to the mandible base (technically this is called the malar space). Few bees show this long a head and it is nearly distinctive within Colletes at least in the north. This is a species that likes to hang out around blueberries and other Vaccinium type things.
Bedraggled Bee. We picture here Colletes willistoni, with mussy hair, something Colletes is prone to. For me this is mostly irritating, in that they don't clean up well for their pictures, for the bees, well, its hard to say, they are an old lineage and apparently great looking hair under all conditions was not their evolutionary priority.
Bedraggled Bee. We picture here Colletes willistoni, with mussy hair, something Colletes is prone to. For me this is mostly irritating, in that they don't clean up well for their pictures, for the bees, well, its hard to say, they are an old lineage and apparently great looking hair under all conditions was not their evolutionary priority.
Badlands National Park
Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.
Interesting and very uncommon bee. Meet Coelioxys banksi. I have only seen a couple, both from NJ, I think. What bee is their host? There are specimens from the East Coast and from the West with a hiatus in the middle. Are they different species or are we simply lousy at finding them? What ever is going on , a pretty slick looking bee.