So here’s some evidence of pollination. This is a new iris this year that the bees created. There are several of these “BeeBabies” new this year and I’ll be posting pics of them as they blossom. This one is especially cute and looks like a keeper! It’s a shortie, but it’s just gorgeous. And super neat that it’s a product of these little ones.
Tag: Iris
Bonus – Dragonfly on Old Iris Stuffs
Really weird light on this one. But I really like the shape of the iris with the shape of the dragonfly. They seem to have some resonance with each other. Really high ISO so there’s some grain in the shot – but it’s full frame and a fun one!
Antegrandinis Iris with Bee
Yes, I did make up that word. And it’s been waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long to know if I used it right. Tough.
Here’s today’s bee. Shot before the next pic happened.
Phone pic of the aftermath of a HUGE hailstorm that just wrecked everything. Notice that the standards are shredded and the middle of the flower is full of hail. I got there a bit late…after it melted some. Brutal on everything blooming.
I keep saying, “there’s probably a lesson there” here on this site. There probably is. I’m going to go with two: First, no matter how well you do your stuff…mindfully and elegantly…sometimes life comes along and hails (that may or may not be a euphemism) on it. Second, the hail melts and becomes a memory quickly…while the protected buds unfurl and the beauty returns. Irises and other flowers keep going. So do the bees. So do you. It’s what we all do.
Bonus: Robber Fly and Hail Damage
Inadvertant pollinator and that hail damage. All of the larger irises are shredded. But it’s a neat fly.
If you’re missing it, that hole in the lower-right corner was made by a hailstone.
On the Iris…
Different iris this time. So many in bloom now, but still rare to catch a bee on one. So…that’s what I’m shooting and posting. A bit too much dark and light in this shot, but that’s what nature has done so that’s what I capture (or reflect).
I like the profile shots lots – in which more of the bee is in focus. Been really appreciating this spring. So many laments during the winter that I was missing the bees. Oh, in other news, just got a text from the bee woman (known as JodyBees…let me know if you want some honey…can ship and it’s fantastic) asked if there was room for a fourth hive in the back yard. How could I say no?? I didn’t, of course. Apparently the queen is a Pendleton (which means the bees may have reddish thorax). That would be super. Anyway…enjoy today’s!
In Flight in a Sea of Iris
Title strikes me as odd. How does one fly in a sea? Guess the bees have figured it out. I seem to get so many “going away” shots – birds, bees, wildlife. Not so many coming at me…but there are a few.
Don’t know what this iris is called, but it sure went wild this year. Must have been more than a dozen blooming at once – and all at the same height. Really a stunner. Bonus points for the shots with bee shadow, too. I really like that.
Bonus – Wasp in an Iris Mess
Here’s a neat look at a paper wasp in the irises – and in the catmint, too. That nasty thing just under and to the right of the wasp is a spent iris. Check out the wasp’s eye. Really neat!
Another on Another Iris
Didn’t get to shooting until late yesterday. Found only a couple of bees. But this one sure turned out to be a good one. Love the pollen all over her back. And the colors of the iris – stunning!
Super-tiny Sweat Bee on an Iris
This one is my new favorite. It’s a tiny, tiny, tiny metallic-looking sweat bee on an iris petal (called a fall – those are the ones which, not surprisingly, hang down. The upright ones are called standards.). But here’s the thing – if you look in the lower right part of the photograph, you can actually see the thickness of the iris’ fall. That’s not something I’d considered before. And it gives some scale to the bee – which (by my guess) was about a quarter of the size of a grain of rice. So tiny…yet so neat.
A Real Rarity – Bumble and Iris
Sooooooooo many irises around here. Probably 50+ different varieties of shorties blooming presently in the gardens. And so many more to come. But… Super rare to catch a bee on one – let alone a bumble. I think this is a queen, too. She was kind of rough on the blossoms. Looked like she was wrestling with something inside. This is a pic of her heading in:
