Posts Tagged: predator

This Spider Went for Plan Bee

The spider failed to snag a butterfly, so it went for Plan Bee. That would be the honey bee, Apis mellifera. The bee is usually foraging for...

A spider executes Plan Bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A spider executes Plan Bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Year 2020 Felt Like a Close Encounter of the Worst Kind

The year 2020 felt like a close encounter of the worst kind. The raging COVID-19 pandemic, the California wildfires, the political scene, the...

Oops! A Gulf Fritillary, Araulis vanillae, lands near a praying mantis, a female Mantis religiosa, in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Oops! A Gulf Fritillary, Araulis vanillae, lands near a praying mantis, a female Mantis religiosa, in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis lurches toward the unsuspecting butterfly and tries to snag it with its spiked forelegs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis lurches toward the unsuspecting butterfly and tries to snag it with its spiked forelegs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Escape! The Gulf Fritillary escapes the predator's clutches. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Escape! The Gulf Fritillary escapes the predator's clutches. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Portraits of The Predator and the Prey

Heads will not roll.  The Hunger Games will not begin.  Preying does not always work.  It's Aug. 2, 2020 and a praying mantis...

Occupied! A praying mantis, a female Stagmomantis limbata occupies a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Occupied! A praying mantis, a female Stagmomantis limbata occupies a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Double Occupancy: The praying mantis and honey bee share the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Double Occupancy: The praying mantis and honey bee share the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Stare: The praying mantis, a carnivore, stares at the honey bee, a vegetarian. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Stare: The praying mantis, a carnivore, stares at the honey bee, a vegetarian. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Oh, Yours? The honey bee prepares to leave the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Oh, Yours? The honey bee prepares to leave the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Lone Occupancy! The praying mantis again owns the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Lone Occupancy! The praying mantis again owns the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Victory in the Verbena

Yes, I'm hungry. A female praying mantis is perched upside down in our pollinator garden. She has maintained this position in the verbena over a...

A female praying mantis, a Stagmomantis limbata (as identified by Lohit Garikipati of UC Davis) is looking for prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A female praying mantis, a Stagmomantis limbata (as identified by Lohit Garikipati of UC Davis) is looking for prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Seconds later, the praying mantis nails a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Seconds later, the praying mantis nails a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, begins to eat. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, begins to eat. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A freeloader fly, (family Milichiidae and probably genus Desmometopa) perches on a spiked foreleg. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A freeloader fly, (family Milichiidae and probably genus Desmometopa) perches on a spiked foreleg. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis eats the last of her prey, while the freeloader fly is out of luck. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The praying mantis eats the last of her prey, while the freeloader fly is out of luck. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All gone and done. The praying mantis is finished with her meal. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All gone and done. The praying mantis is finished with her meal. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

How Magical Are the Dragonflies

How magical are the dragonflies. They zig-zag through the pollinator garden, a perfect portrait of a predator: multifaceted eyes, strong wings, and...

This is a male flameskimmer, Libellula saturata, photographed in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

How magical is the dragonfly! This is a male flameskimmer, Libellula saturata, photographed in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up of a firecracker red flameskimmer, Libellula saturata. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up of a firecracker red flameskimmer, Libellula saturata. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Dinner time! A red flameskimmer, Libellula saturata, munches on a bee, probably a longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Dinner time! A red flameskimmer, Libellula saturata, munches on a bee, probably a longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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