Posts Tagged: pollinator week

Applause for the Pollinators

Bees, butterflies, beetles, birds and bats. What do they have in common? Skipping the alliteration for a moment, they're all pollinators. Honey...

A Western tiger swallowtail, Papilio rutulus, touches down on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Western tiger swallowtail, Papilio rutulus, touches down on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The soldier beetle (family Cantharida) is also a pollinator. This insect resembles the uniforms of the British soldiers of the American Revolution. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The soldier beetle (family Cantharida) is also a pollinator. This insect resembles the uniforms of the British soldiers of the American Revolution. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, and a Western yellowjacket, Vespula penslvanica, sharing a rose. Both are pollinators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, and a Western yellowjacket, Vespula penslvanica, sharing a rose. Both are pollinators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, and a bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, sharing a purple cone flower, Echinacea purpurea. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, and a bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, sharing a purple cone flower, Echinacea purpurea. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Hello There, Little Leafcutter Bee

Hello there, little leafcutter bee! Yes, you, foraging on the sky-blue Chinese Forget-Me-Nots! You're just in time for National Pollinator...

A leafcutter bee, family Megachilidae, peers at the photographer. "Here I am! It's National Pollinator Week." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A leafcutter bee, family Megachilidae, peers at the photographer. "Here I am! It's National Pollinator Week." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The leafcutter bee continues foraging on the Chinese-Forget-Me-Nots. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The leafcutter bee continues foraging on the Chinese-Forget-Me-Nots. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The leafcutter bee ignores the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Yes, this spot here looks good! The leafcutter bee ignores the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Okay, I'm leaving now for another blossom." The leafcutter bee is about to take flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Okay, I'm leaving now for another blossom." The leafcutter bee is about to take flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What's on the Day's Agenda for This Longhorned Bee?

Hey, the sun's up! It's time to rise and shine! Maybe I'll shine before I rise...or maybe I'll... Anyway, I just woke up, and I'm starting to stir....

After spending the night sleeping on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, a male longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, starts to stir. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

After spending the night sleeping on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, a male longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, starts to stir. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Day 6 of National Pollinator Week: Meet the Drone Fly

It's Day 6 of National Pollinator Week. Meet the drone fly (Eristalis tenax), often mistaken for a honey bee. The late Robbin Thorp, UC...

This drone fly (Eristalis tenax) is often mistaken for a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This drone fly (Eristalis tenax) is often mistaken for a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Day 4 of National Pollinator Week: Beetles

When you think of pollinators, you think of bees, right?  And well you should: honey bees are the global workhorses of the pollination...

The blister beetle is both a pollinator and a pest. It is a pest of alfalfa and is toxic to livestock, especially horses. This one is foraging on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The blister beetle is both a pollinator and a pest. It is a pest of alfalfa and is toxic to livestock, especially horses. This one is foraging on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of a blister beetle foraging on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of a blister beetle foraging on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The blister beetle peers over a petal of a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The blister beetle peers over a petal of a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifola) in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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