Images

Gasteruptoin species (thank you John Jennings for the det). Collected a few days ago at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, which sits in the marshlands of Dorchester County, Maryland with the habitat being combinations of marsh and loblolly pine. Collected as an incidental to collecting bees on flowers. Photography by Elizabeth Garcia.

Nectar dries quickly in the Atacama Desert of Chile, the driest desert in the world, and so many plants hide their nectar in deep nectaries. Bees visiting these flowers need long tongues and, in some instances, a very long head to reach the nectar.

Nectar dries quickly in the Atacama Desert of Chile, the driest desert in the world, and so many plants hide their nectar in deep nectaries. Bees visiting these flowers need long tongues and, in some instances, a very long head to reach the nectar.

Nectar dries quickly in the Atacama Desert of Chile, the driest desert in the world, and so many plants hide their nectar in deep nectaries. Bees visiting these flowers need long tongues and, in some instances, a very long head to reach the nectar.

Nectar dries quickly in the Atacama Desert of Chile, the driest desert in the world, and so many plants hide their nectar in deep nectaries. Bees visiting these flowers need long tongues and, in some instances, a very long head to reach the nectar.

Foot of Geothlypis trichas, Common Yellowthroat, Stuck the Thurgood Marshall Building, May of 2012 in Washington D.C. in migration

Geothlypis trichas, Common Yellowthroat, Stuck the Thurgood Marshall Building, May of 2012 in Washington D.C. in migration

The Wild Geranium, Geranium maculatum, not your grandmother's house plant, but a wild, native relative. You can see its resemblance. A haunter of bottomlands and an important nectar and pollen source for bees in the spring....including a couple of specialists. Specimen and photograph by Helen Lowe Metzman.

Bees Trained to Collect Gold DustIn the Upper Congo past gold mining's legacy left a moonscape of large and small open pits. Some of these pits date to the turn of the previous century.

Charidotella sexpunctata - One of the many variations of this electric beetle, exquisite in its color, form, and blends of neon all free of charge from your friend: Nature.Upper Marlboro, MarylandCanon 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 .p

Rattlesnake Plantain. Oh, look an orchid. An orchid that is not too uncommon in acidy woodlands. What a lovely leaf too. Picture and specimen by Helen Low Metzman.

Rattlesnake Plantain. Oh, look an orchid. An orchid that is not too uncommon in acidy woodlands. What a lovely leaf too. Picture and specimen by Helen Low Metzman.

Found a Common Grackle lying on the ground yesterday and took it to photograph. While taking pictures of the lovely subtle sheened feathers on the back of the head, an ant must have walked through one of the shots and its ghostly imprint remained.

Quiscalus quiscula - The Common Grackle. A hefty gracklesk foot befitting the beast. 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.

Graphocephala versuta - A beautiful multiculored, but minute leafhopper, here captured and photographed in Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Graphocephala versuta - A beautiful multiculored, but minute leafhopper, here captured and photographed in Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Pisaurina mira? Need confirmation please.Have another shot coming of the upper surface. Front legs removed to better expose the face

A nymph of a short-horned grasshopper, not sure what species. Another experiment with a 10X microscope lens. Specimen from my yard in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

I feel like I should know what this beetle is...but I do not. It has a tortoise beetle feel. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Anne Arundel County, MD, Identified as Gratiana pallidula, Eggplant Tortoise Beetle by Treegoat. Living specimens are a nice hospital green.

I feel like I should know what this beetle is...but I do not. It has a tortoise beetle feel. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Anne Arundel County, MD Identified as Gratiana pallidula, Eggplant Tortoise Beetle by Treegoat. Living specimens are a nice hospital green.

I feel like I should know what this beetle is...but I do not. It has a tortoise beetle feel. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Anne Arundel County, MD - Very Queen like from this underside shot. Identified as Gratiana pallidula, Eggplant Tortoise Beetle by Treegoat. Living specimens are a nice hospital green.