Posts Tagged: catmint

European Wool Carder Bees: 'The End Is Near'

It's almost the end of the season for the European wool carder bee, Anthidium manicatum. A few still hang around the foxgloves, the catmint and the...

A male European wool carder bee, Anthidium manicatum, rests on an African blue basil leaf in the early morning. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male European wool carder bee, Anthidium manicatum, rests on an African blue basil leaf in the early morning. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Find the European wool carder bee! It's difficult to see as it rests on an African blue basil bloom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Find the European wool carder bee! It's difficult to see as it rests on an African blue basil bloom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A European wool carder bee, a black and yellow streak, heads for a foxglove. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A European wool carder bee, a black and yellow streak, heads for a foxglove. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A European wool carder bee foraging in a foxglove blossom. Sometimes they sleep inside. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A European wool carder bee foraging in a foxglove blossom. Sometimes they sleep inside. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ready or Not, Here I Come!

Ready or not, here I come! "Wait, can you slow down a bit?" I ask. "I can't focus when you move so fast!" No, sorry! I'm in a hurry! Anthophora...

A digger bee, Anthophora urbana in flight, as it heads for another catmint blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A digger bee, Anthophora urbana in flight, as it heads for another catmint blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Happy Fly Day Friday!

Happy Fly Day Friday! If you've ever wondered why entomologists and insect enthusiasts post images of flies on Friday, not to worry. They consider...

It's Friday Fly Day, so how about three green bottle flies on a catmint leaf? Imsge taken in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It's Friday Fly Day, so how about three green bottle flies on a catmint leaf? Imsge taken in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Bee and the Butterfly

So here's this Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) clinging to a lavender stem in our pollinator garden. It is all alone--for a little white. Then...

A Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) clinging to a lavender stem in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) clinging to a lavender stem in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, seeking nectar from a lavender, buzzes a Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, seeking nectar from a lavender, buzzes a Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It's up and over and away for the honey bee. Can't you see as big a thing as me? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It's up and over and away for the honey bee. Can't you see as big a thing as me? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Gulf Fritillary heads for the nearby catmint patch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Gulf Fritillary heads for the nearby catmint patch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All Wrapped Up

Just call it a missed opportunity. Catmint (genus Nepeta) draws scores of insects, from honey bees to leafcutter bees to European wool carder...

A cellar spider eyes a honey bee in the catmint (Nepeta). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A cellar spider eyes a honey bee in the catmint (Nepeta). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All wrapped up--a cellar spider nabs another cellar spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All wrapped up--a cellar spider nabs another cellar spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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