Images

A cranberry specialist. This bee is one of the few bees that specializes on bogs and bog plants and is found in scattered locations from Southern New England along the coastal plane to the Gulf Coast. This specimen was collected by Heather Campbell in the sandhills of North Carolina. Photograph by Brooke Alexander.

An all African. This small species was captured in South Africa by Laurence Packer's lab. Often this species has multiple males and females using the same nest, though apparently not dividing up the labor, but simply finding some advantage of living together rather than nesting in the ground separately.

Hey now here is a common bee from Kruger National Park, Meliturgula scriptifrons. A smallish brown bee that are commonly caught in bowl traps. Part of the small number of genera in Andrenidae. Photo by Kelly Graninger.

Sad, Sad, Sad. This is Virginia Bluebells, Mertensia virginica. Formerly common throughout the bottomlands of the Mid-Atlantic region. Now Bluebell land has more and more become Lesser Celandine land...and invader from the old world that simply wipes out the vernal communities of plants along streams and rivers.

Cumberland Island National Seashore,Georgia

Velvet Ants are not ants but, rather, they are wasps and many of them are not the standard red colored velvet ant usually portrayed. Here is a small ochreish colored male (only males have wings) from California. For wasps they are quite hairy. So there. Photograph by Dejen Mengis.

The eastern subspecies of the Yellow-rumped warbler, Setophaga coronata. This bird ran into a building at night while it was migrating and was picked up by the Lights out DC group.

Tiny bee, longggggg tongue, this is the only member of its genus that has been found and is associated with the endemic desert plants in the genus Malesherbia. This species makes its nest in reexisting cracks in the dry dry soils of the region.

Foreign Extremists: Yep, these species are attacking Purple Loosestrife left and right. Imported plant being attacked by imported beetles. This is either Neogalerucella calmariensis or N. pussila, it is not clear to me how to tell them apart, but I lean towards the former, if anyone cares.

This is picture 5 from a 12 picture invited series by Matt Buffington (matt.buffington@usda.gov) at the USDA Parastitic Hymentoptera group using specimens from the U.S. Natural History Museum Smithsonian.

There are many species of Melissodes and as you can see from this male, they aren't called Long-horn Bees for nothing. All or almost all of these species are summer to fall bees and most are fond to very fond of flowers in the Asteraceae family ... the fall composites by other names.

A first state record for South Carolina. This is the uncommon Melissodes manipularis. Its a male as you can tell by the very long antennae. This bee was collected as part of a survey of coastal Spring Island by Merle Shepherd and compatriots.

A first state record for South Carolina. This is the uncommon Melissodes manipularis. Its a male as you can tell by the very long antennae. This bee was collected as part of a survey of coastal Spring Island by Merle Shepherd and compatriots.

Jasper County, South Carolina, right across from Savannah Georgia sits Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. A refuge of dikes around huge old rice fields that now grow ducks and other marshlings. A few bees occur here, but diversity is pretty low as this is not so much a natural, but a managed habitat.

Unknown Parasitic Wasp, Cecil County, Maryland, Collected by Tim McMahon. Photographed by Wayne Boo.Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200, link to a .pdf of our set up is located in our profile

The luscious greenescent caterpillar of the brown drab northern pearly eye butterfly. check out the 6 little eyes located down near the mouth/mandibles, I feel rather "Hello Kitty" when looking this one in the faceCanon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Photographer: Sam Droege, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200

Oh, the subtleties of nature. Just looking at this lovely blend of burgandies, glowing light pink, and dark green is to come to worship the infinite. Am I allowed to say that? To gush, rather than dissect? Sure, who wants their government scientist all bound in the plastic cage of academic sciencespeak. So, to business then.

Ophiogomphus susbehcha, cast skin, collected by Richard Orr along the Potomac River

James River at West View, teneral 4/23/2011, Collector S.M. Roble

Euglossa....the orchid bees, swanky glintlings of the New World tropical forests. The males gather fragrances produced by orchids who are then pollinated by the infatuations of these males.

Another orchid bee in the genus Euglossa from Guyana. At present no species name, but perhaps some day I will have time to work with David Roubik on the many species we collected on a Smithsonian expedition into the interior jungles. This is a male, collected using some of the orchid floral scents to attract them that they use in courtship rituals.