Images

One of the best pollinator plants ever. This is Circium discolor (field or pasture thistle). Its a native thistle, does not invade fields, is not perennial and has a whole suite of bees that depend on it and its relatives to provide pollen for their young. Please plant some, you will be thrilled with all the big dark winged bumble bees that show up too.

One of the best pollinator plants ever. This is Circium discolor (field or pasture thistle). Its a native thistle, does not invade fields, is not perennial and has a whole suite of bees that depend on it and its relatives to provide pollen for their young. Please plant some, you will be thrilled with all the big dark winged bumble bees that show up too.

A series of shots of Citrus Psyllid adults (including a recently emerged white adult) , and larvae of Diaphorina citri which is the transporting agent of citrus greening disease now devastating Florida's orange groves. Pictures taken at Level 3 level quarantine at USDA's Lab at Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Thanks to Tina Paul for fascilitating all of this.

A series of shots of Citrus Psyllid adults (including a recently emerged white adult) , and larvae of Diaphorina citri which is the transporting agent of citrus greening disease now devastating Florida's orange groves. Pictures taken at Level 3 level quarantine at USDA's Lab at Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Thanks to Tina Paul for fascilitating all of this.

Fluorescent Leafhopper, Coelidiana colens, from Peru. Just grabbed this tiny leafhopper from the Natural History Museum at random to play with some 10x shots...would have liked to have shot this one with a fresh specimen.

A lovely nest parasite of Megachile (leaf-cutter bees)....from Franklin County, Virginia. Picture taken by Brooke Alexander. 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.

Coelioxys alternata, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, collected by Stephanie Wilson at the Morris Arboretum

Most Coelioxys look similar (don't you agree?), dulled gray black, heavily pitted, with strong patterns of popping white hair bands. Ah, but here, we have one arrayed in batmobile colors, glossy, midnight black with reduced pitting and purple/black wings.

The dark and mysterious nest parasite of Megachile xylocopoides, one of the few records for the state of Maryland, but more are expected as M. xylocopoides spreads northward. This specimen from Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Kent County.

The taper looks of a nest parasite of Megachile. This is Coelioxys gilensis. Found in Yosemite National park and collected for a project done by Lauren Ponisio examining the effect of fire diversity on bees (Ponisio et al. Global Change Biol. 2016).

Ceratina cockerelli, male

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How could one not love the Genus of Ceratina? Elegant, with just the right combination of extra interesting features to keep the interest up. Note the raised clypeus in this one and the lovely fat hairs along the abdominal sections. From the collections of Sandra Rehan at the University of New Hampshire.

Ah, a mysterious Ceratina introduced into the Hawaiian island chain. This species is found throughout the islands now, but no one is quite sure what the species is. It is near the species C. dentipes but may or may not be it. So many mysteries in the world and too many introduced species. Photography by Sierra Williams and Photoshopping by Elizabeth Garcia.

Tiny Ceratina from Panama...in the first picture in this series you will see a rod going into its body to hold it in position for photographing in our mini bee studio. Actually this is not a rod but the very tip of the finest acupuncture pin. Yep, that is a small bee.

Yep, there are a lot of Ceratinas out there in the world. Here is the last in the series of Ceratinas from Sandra Rehan. As usual it is a small one from Panama. Tiny bees almost always have plenty of wing pop...no exception here.

Yet more Ceratina pictures, diversity demands it. This series is from specimens collected in Panama by Sandra Rehan (UNH) as part of her mission to know everything there is to know about Ceratinas.

Yet more Ceratina pictures, diversity demands it. This series is from specimens collected in Panama by Sandra Rehan (UNH) as part of her mission to know everything there is to know about Ceratinas.

Yet more Ceratina pictures, diversity demands it. This series is from specimens collected in Panama by Sandra Rehan (UNH) as part of her mission to know everything there is to know about Ceratinas.

A small Centris species take by Sara Prado in Puerto Rico

A disjunct population of a western bee...or at least not intermediate populations have been found between Florida and the West. This specimen was caught almost in Georgia, so close as it might as well be recorded for the state.