Post a reply

Image
Sep 19, 2015 4:16 PM CST
Name: Dirt
(Zone 5b)
Region: Utah Bee Lover Garden Photography Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2015 Photo Contest Winner: 2016
Photo Contest Winner 2018 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2020 Photo Contest Winner 2021 Photo Contest Winner 2022 Photo Contest Winner 2023
my, what beautiful and happy bumblers you have Smiling
and that last fly--wow--brings flashbacks of that movie Blinking

we have a lot of these flies
Thumb of 2015-09-19/dirtdorphins/c1f8bb
Image
Sep 19, 2015 4:40 PM CST
central Illinois
Charter ATP Member I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Hosted a Not-A-Raffle-Raffle Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Plant Identifier Garden Ideas: Level 2
Celebrating Gardening: 2015 Avid Green Pages Reviewer Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2017
The Wasps

Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/5ed091


Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/17bc91 Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/6f09ea


Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/0124a5 Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/11aeb8 Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/36e89f


Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/1f6c90 Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/700d0f


Thumb of 2015-09-19/jmorth/3b0f20
Nothing that's been done can ever be changed.
Image
Sep 19, 2015 5:17 PM CST
Name: Catmint/Robin
PNW WA half hour south of Olym (Zone 8a)
Region: Pacific Northwest Region: Mid-Atlantic Region: Maryland Butterflies Bee Lover Native Plants and Wildflowers
Echinacea Azaleas Forum moderator Cottage Gardener Garden Ideas: Master Level Celebrating Gardening: 2015
great photos, J and Dirt!! Hurray!
"One of the pleasures of being a gardener comes from the enjoyment you get looking at other people's yards”
― Thalassa Cruso
Image
Sep 19, 2015 6:13 PM CST
Name: Christine
North East Texas (Zone 7b)
Shine Your Light!
Heirlooms Native Plants and Wildflowers Organic Gardener Hummingbirder Bee Lover Herbs
Butterflies Dragonflies Birds Cat Lover Dog Lover Garden Photography
Wonderful photos J & Dirt!! Lovey dubby Lovey dubby
I'm wondering if J's last fly is a Tachinid fly? It looks like one with that bristly body.

Dirt, your last shot is great! Hilarious! Thumbs up
May your life be like a wildflower, growing freely in the beauty and joy of each day --Native American Proverb

Image
Sep 19, 2015 6:58 PM CST
Name: Dirt
(Zone 5b)
Region: Utah Bee Lover Garden Photography Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2015 Photo Contest Winner: 2016
Photo Contest Winner 2018 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2020 Photo Contest Winner 2021 Photo Contest Winner 2022 Photo Contest Winner 2023
J, I can see how you might get a face full-o-wasp on a windy day. In my experience they are usually pretty focused on feeding when that's what they're doing and they get right back to it if disturbed a little--still though, my face might be a little leery of getting in your waspville Hilarious!

In watching the wool carder bees' escapades in the catmint,
Thumb of 2015-09-19/dirtdorphins/82fb58 Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/855f62
I have decided that the males are seriously randy little buggers.
Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/028471 Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/77bad0
Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/d22f63 Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/16b5a1
I have read that they can be aggressive toward other bees--there were even some wild stories of them killing honey bees. I have seen them pounce on the honey bees on rare occasion, like they do the girl carder bees, but the honey bees are not at all interested in that and shake them off and get on with their business. Aside from their aggressive, and persistent, mating obsession, I have only seen the males go after other carder bee males. And they definitely leave the bumblebees alone.

female finding another flower in a moment of peace
Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/646d7e
male taking a break
Thumb of 2015-09-20/dirtdorphins/c8e45c

I had thought these were some kind of fancy native bees, but they are a fairly recent introduction from Europe
Image
Sep 19, 2015 7:04 PM CST
central Illinois
Charter ATP Member I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Hosted a Not-A-Raffle-Raffle Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Plant Identifier Garden Ideas: Level 2
Celebrating Gardening: 2015 Avid Green Pages Reviewer Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2017
Great pics!
Amorous adventurers for sure...Life ever goes on
Nothing that's been done can ever be changed.
Image
Sep 19, 2015 7:09 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Asa
Wasatch Front - Utah
Bee Lover Garden Photography Region: Utah Photo Contest Winner: 2016 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2021
Garden Ideas: Master Level
Outstanding stuff!
Image
Sep 19, 2015 7:10 PM CST
Name: Catmint/Robin
PNW WA half hour south of Olym (Zone 8a)
Region: Pacific Northwest Region: Mid-Atlantic Region: Maryland Butterflies Bee Lover Native Plants and Wildflowers
Echinacea Azaleas Forum moderator Cottage Gardener Garden Ideas: Master Level Celebrating Gardening: 2015
yes, extremely interesting! though not sure I'd want to be a carder bee in my next life...
"One of the pleasures of being a gardener comes from the enjoyment you get looking at other people's yards”
― Thalassa Cruso
Last edited by Catmint20906 Sep 19, 2015 7:11 PM Icon for preview
Image
Sep 19, 2015 7:14 PM CST
Name: Christine
North East Texas (Zone 7b)
Shine Your Light!
Heirlooms Native Plants and Wildflowers Organic Gardener Hummingbirder Bee Lover Herbs
Butterflies Dragonflies Birds Cat Lover Dog Lover Garden Photography
Wow pictures Dirt!

Very interesting! Are those bees face to face? I've never seen that before in the insect world. Rolling my eyes.
May your life be like a wildflower, growing freely in the beauty and joy of each day --Native American Proverb

Image
Sep 19, 2015 7:28 PM CST
Name: Dirt
(Zone 5b)
Region: Utah Bee Lover Garden Photography Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2015 Photo Contest Winner: 2016
Photo Contest Winner 2018 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2020 Photo Contest Winner 2021 Photo Contest Winner 2022 Photo Contest Winner 2023
Hilarious! I hear ya catmint!

No, it's essentially regular animal and/or insect style--the girl bee is busy nectaring with her head buried in the flower and the male pounces on the end that's sticking out and kind of immobilizes her in the flower. Once, I saw him pull her right out of the flower and they fell.
It's hard to photograph well because they are always in the deeper flowers or so it seems.
Image
Sep 19, 2015 8:08 PM CST
Name: ursula
Chile (Zone 9b)
WOW, what a great thread!!!!

I must have some 'brainstorming' now to find a way to earn more acorns to give you girls. Your pictures are G R E A T!
Image
Sep 19, 2015 9:54 PM CST
Name: Ronnie (Veronica)
Southeastern PA (Zone 6b)
Count your blessings, be grateful
Region: Ukraine Organic Gardener Keeps Goats Zinnias Dog Lover Morning Glories
Annuals Bee Lover Dragonflies Butterflies Hummingbirder Birds
Incredible photos I tip my hat to you. Thumbs up I tip my hat to you.
Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.
Image
Sep 19, 2015 10:34 PM CST
Name: Melanie
Lutz, Florida (Zone 9b)
Butterflies Enjoys or suffers hot summers Hummingbirder Birds Bee Lover Bookworm
Region: Florida Celebrating Gardening: 2015 Bromeliad Native Plants and Wildflowers Plant Identifier Salvias
Welcome to the thread Ursula, and thanks for the acorn! And FYI, we're got some guys on the thread, too. Like jmorth who is Jack. He's hogging all the cool wasps and stuff on his Goldenrod right now. Hilarious!

In looking at some of the pictures earlier, I couldn't help but think about the beauty of the wings on these insects. And then it occurred to me that a lot of children's toys with wings on them (like the My Little Ponies "Flutter Ponies" I had as a child) have wings that are based more on flies and bees than butterflies. Think about how most fairies are illustrated - they have those see-through, iridescent wings like bees. Even though I think the intention is to make them "pretty" like butterflies, the wings don't tend to look anything like a butterfly. I guess I had that on my mind because a girl brought her "Butterfly Barbie" to MOSI when I was there the other day.
Image
Sep 19, 2015 11:10 PM CST
Name: ursula
Chile (Zone 9b)
Thanks, Melanie. I really enjoyed this thread!

My apologies to Jack! Why did I think the 'J' stands for Judith? It won't happen again.

Melanie, I'm almost 65 - those toys did not exist when I was a child (or were not exported to Chile). I remember having had a foam and wire Popeye and later a ViewMaster and a plastic Pluto (maybe the memories of my childhood Pluto drove me to place a Pluto sticker on the back of my cellphone LOL). But fairies ..... I love them ever since my early childhood and yes, they have fabulous wings (I saw them as a child).
Image
Sep 19, 2015 11:43 PM CST
Name: Melanie
Lutz, Florida (Zone 9b)
Butterflies Enjoys or suffers hot summers Hummingbirder Birds Bee Lover Bookworm
Region: Florida Celebrating Gardening: 2015 Bromeliad Native Plants and Wildflowers Plant Identifier Salvias
Don't worry about Jack; I think he's incognito. Otherwise, he would put his name in his profile like the rest of us. Hilarious! I used to read it literally and called him "Jay" in my head for the longest time.

I love having international members on the forum, so be sure to share all the fabulous photos of your country with us! Or just hang out and chat! I love how the internet brings us all closer together so we can share our knowledge across vast distances and connect to people we never would have met before. Thumbs up
Image
Sep 20, 2015 9:39 AM CST
Name: ursula
Chile (Zone 9b)
Thank you again, Melanie.

I'll be around!
Image
Sep 20, 2015 9:47 AM CST
Name: Catmint/Robin
PNW WA half hour south of Olym (Zone 8a)
Region: Pacific Northwest Region: Mid-Atlantic Region: Maryland Butterflies Bee Lover Native Plants and Wildflowers
Echinacea Azaleas Forum moderator Cottage Gardener Garden Ideas: Master Level Celebrating Gardening: 2015
Speaking of rue, I found one of my BST cats on my rue. I carefully picked some rue for him to eat, but he shunned it in favor of the fennel the other cats were eating! :-D

Found 2 Monarch cats on my milkweed this morning, plus another BST early instar and a couple eggs on the fennel.
"One of the pleasures of being a gardener comes from the enjoyment you get looking at other people's yards”
― Thalassa Cruso
Image
Sep 20, 2015 10:37 AM CST
Surprisingly GREEN Pittsburgh (Zone 6a)
Rabbit Keeper Bee Lover Cat Lover Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Butterflies Hummingbirder
Dog Lover Birds Plant and/or Seed Trader Bulbs Echinacea Irises
I was once told that rue will repel cats.
Didn't work for me then, isn't working for you now....

I do have catnip though, from seed this year.
Bees love it as much as cats do!
SHOW ME YOUR CRITTERS! I have a critter page over at Cubits. http://cubits.org/crittergarde...
Image
Sep 20, 2015 11:33 AM CST
Name: Dirt
(Zone 5b)
Region: Utah Bee Lover Garden Photography Photo Contest Winner: 2014 Photo Contest Winner: 2015 Photo Contest Winner: 2016
Photo Contest Winner 2018 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2020 Photo Contest Winner 2021 Photo Contest Winner 2022 Photo Contest Winner 2023
Rolling on the floor laughing Rolling on the floor laughing Rolling on the floor laughing
I didn't know we were talking about rue
what is rue?
and cats and caterpillars rarely respond to various plants the same way so now I'm pretty sure I'm confused Hilarious!

Welcome to the thread Ursula nodding
Image
Sep 20, 2015 12:04 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Asa
Wasatch Front - Utah
Bee Lover Garden Photography Region: Utah Photo Contest Winner: 2016 Photo Contest Winner 2019 Photo Contest Winner 2021
Garden Ideas: Master Level
Thumb of 2015-09-20/evermorelawnless/8ea773??? Thumb of 2015-09-20/evermorelawnless/f69054????

I'm really confused!

Only the members of the Members group may reply to this thread.
Member Login:

( No account? Join now! )

Today's site banner is by fiwit and is called "Gazing at More Stars"

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.