Posts Tagged: Tithonia rotundifolia

Buckeye Butterfly: Wanna Piece of Me?

Wanna piece of me?  "Hey, Buckeye butterfly, you over there with chunks of a wing missing, yeah you, what happened?"  "Well, it was like...

Signs of a predator. A tattered Buckeye butterfly, Junonia coenia, sipping nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Signs of a predator. A tattered Buckeye butterfly, Junonia coenia, sipping nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Buckeye butterfly can't get enough of the nectar of the Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Buckeye butterfly can't get enough of the nectar of the Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ready to fly, the Buckeye butterfly checks out the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ready to fly, the Buckeye butterfly checks out the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Eye on the Tiger

So here, you are, a Western Tiger Swallowtail sipping nectar from a Mexican sunflower. You are a Papilo rutulus. And your menu...

A Western tiger swallowtail, Papilo rutulus, lands on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Western tiger swallowtail, Papilo rutulus, lands on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A dark shadow heads toward the Western Tiger Swallowtail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A dark shadow heads toward the Western Tiger Swallowtail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male territorial long-horned bee, buzzes the Western Tiger Swallowtail, like a jet fighter plane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male territorial long-horned bee, buzzes the Western Tiger Swallowtail, like a jet fighter plane. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Right wing? Left wing? Up the middle. The male territorial longhorned bee tries to dislodge the Western Tiger Swallowtail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Right wing? Left wing? Up the middle. The male territorial longhorned bee tries to dislodge the Western Tiger Swallowtail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

I'm coming for you! The male territorial bee roars up over the Mexican sunflower as the Western Tiger Swallowtail scrambles for safety. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

I'm coming for you! The male territorial bee roars up over the Mexican sunflower as the Western Tiger Swallowtail scrambles for safety. (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)

Behold: A Mexican Cactus Fly on a Mexican Sunflower

It's not often you see a Mexican cactus fly, Copestylum mexicanum, nectaring on a Mexican...

"Aah, nectar!" A Mexican cactus fly, Copestylum mexicanum, on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Aah, nectar!" A Mexican cactus fly, Copestylum mexicanum, on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Here's looking at you!" A Mexican cactus fly, Copestylum mexicanum, sips nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Here's looking at you!" A Mexican cactus fly, Copestylum mexicanum, sips nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"My territory!" says a dive-bombing male longhorned bee, a Melissodes agilis, as it targets the Mexican cactus fly. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"My territory!" says a dive-bombing male longhorned bee, a Melissodes agilis, as it targets the Mexican cactus fly. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Coming at ya!" A Mexican cactus fly sails over a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey

"Coming at ya!" A Mexican cactus fly sails over a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The wings of the Mexican cactus flower glisten in the morning sun. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The wings of the Mexican cactus flower glisten in the morning sun. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

So Bee It...

The honey bees love it. So do the long-horned bees, bumble bees, carpenter bees, European paper wasps, syrphid flies, butterflies, blister...

A honey bee heads toward a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee heads toward a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ah, this Mexican sunflower is all mine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ah, this Mexican sunflower is all mine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It pays to keep a lookout while you're foraging on the ever-popular Mexican sunflower, genus Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It pays to keep a lookout while you're foraging on the ever-popular Mexican sunflower, genus Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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