Andrena hybrida, F, Back, Greece, Aegean Islands, Lesvos, Aglassos
Detailed Description
Andrena hybrida: A small bee from the Grecian Isles, ...interesting in that unlike the hundreds of others of its Andrena kinfolk, rather than appearing all black has the size, shape, and coloration of a several species of cleptoparasitic bees who have red abdomens. Why is that? As usual, this species remains largely unstudied, but perhaps a hint is that its nearest relatives are known to be pollen specialists on things in tormentil or speedwell groups. Pictures by Brooke Alexander and Shopping by Ben Smith. 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. USGSBIML Photoshopping Technique: Note that we now have added using the burn tool at 50% opacity set to shadows to clean up the halos that bleed into the black background from "hot" color sections of the picture.
Sources/Usage
Public Domain.