It wasn't the best of years for honey bees but mine have thrived. Here is a picture of a drone (male) following a worker back to the hive.
Just one bumblebee photo, a Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum), although I have seen all but one of the common seven species in my garden - the missing one was the Garden Bumblebee.
I built a bee house and to my delight three holes were occupied by Red Mason Bees (Osmia bicornis). Here is one bringing a mouthful of mud back to her nest.
And some mining bees. Here is a female Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea).
And a female Orange-tailed Mining Bee (Andrena haemorrhoa).
A female Ashy Mining Bee (Andrena cineraria).
This is a Green-eyed Flower Bee (Anthophora bimaculata).
And finally a couple of cuckoo bees. A female Gooden's Nomad Bee (Nomada goodeniana) and a Common Mourning Bee (Melecta albifrons).
I hope to find many more in 2016.
I think I learn something every time I visit this blog, leaving me with the distinctive feeling I need to open my eyes to the world beyond birds.
ReplyDeleteFabulous bee photos, Christopher. They are indeed as colourful and interesting as birds and too often overlooked. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteLovely clear photos, thank you.
ReplyDeleteWhere was the Anthophora bimaculata photo taken please - not in the NE presumably? I would love to see this bee!
Hi Louise. The Anthophora bimaculata was in Nether Heyford, Northants on 27th June - the day of your bee i.d course that I couldn't attend! There were lots of A. plumipes nearby a few weeks before - that's what I thought it was at first but it was too late for a male and (now I know) the green eyes are a giveaway. The Melecta albifrons was in the same village and was after the A. plumipes nests. All the others were up here - the mining bees on the Spetchells.
DeleteWonderful photos, thank you. Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteSome spectacular bees here. I wanted to stroke the fluffy Buffish mining bee.
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