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macropis europea, f, austria, face

Detailed Description

Macropis europaea, European Oil Bee, specimen collected by Heinrich Friese in AustriaSometimes an entire group of bees develops a relationship with one group of plants. The 16 little species of Macropis Oil Bees are such a case. They only seek pollen and oil from plants within the genus Lysimachia. What 's more they only seek the members of that tribe of plants that produce the gift of oil, some species of Lysimachia do not produce oil and thus are never visited by these bees. Macropis Oil Bees use the oils provided by these plants to waterproof their nests, moisten their load of pollen as they forage, and to feed their young.These are bees of the northern hemisphere, found only in North America, Europe and northern Asia matching the bulk of the distribution of Lysimachia species, which thrive in temperate climates. European species appear to be doing well but North American ones appear to have mysteriously crashed and they are now quite rare and their one North American nest parasite (Epeoloides pilosula) is almost extinct, whereas its European relative, E. coecutiens, remains quite common. 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.