Bug Squad

Mason wasps are strikingly beautiful. The black and yellow patterns are intriguing, but even more intriguing are the mud nests they build. Makes sense that these wasps are called mason or potter wasps, named for what they do. Their human counterparts work with stone, brick, and concrete.

The warmth of the sun and the lure of nectar beckoned the hover flies or flower flies to our bee friendly garden. We saw this one nectaring the rock purslane (Calandrinia grandiflora) last weekend.

Ever wonder how a honey bee sees? Its compound eyes are comprised of hundreds of single eyes (ommatidia), each with its own lens. It can distinguish colors, but can't see red, which it interprets as black.

Hap-bee Thanksgiving! If you're having cranberries, squash, pumpkins, carrots, cucumbers (and pickles) onions, grapefruit, oranges, apples, pears, cherries, blueberries, sunflowers and almonds, you can thank the honey bee.

I slipped into the back yard today to see how many honey bees were nectaring the lavender, one of the few plants still blooming. A few here. A few there. That's when I saw her. A bee the color of pure gold. And she was carrying a load of pollen that was equally pure gold.