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Tag: honey bee (Page 1 of 5)

Bug of the Week: Honey Bee on Cactus Flower

March 18, 2026 / / 0 Comments

This week it seems like everything is in bloom, even the oak trees.

blue candle cactus flower yellowish white

I was impressed by the number of buds on this bilberry cactus, Myrtillocactus geometrizans (also called blue candle cactus).

honey bee on cactus flower

The honey bees have a lot of different blooms to chose from, but these cactus flowers were popular.

honey bee on yellowish white cactus flower

Sorry the photos aren’t better, I had to use my phone.

We’ve also had a bunch of pallid-winged grasshoppers. They seem to like to sit on my car for some reason.

We are expecting extreme heat this weekend (107°F!!). Hopefully it doesn’t harm the plants and insects.

How is the weather where you are?  Can you find any insects this week?

 

 

Favorite Insect Photographs of 2021

January 1, 2022 / / 4 Comments

This is the time to look back at the highlights of the past year and look forward to upcoming adventures. In that vein, here are some of my favorite insect photographs from 2021.

Butterflies like this hairstreak are always such prima donnas.

 

 

Okay, so my favorites aren’t all photographs. These queen butterflies tell off the intruder by flapping their wings.

 

Roses always look even more lovely with a katydid decoration.

 

My neighbor was so excited when the praying mantis egg cases she had purchased began hatching that she called me over to watch. It was pretty amazing to see all the little nymphs. Later I found this one in our yard.

 

Yep, another video. In this one I caught a honey bee using her legs to pat pollen into her already pretty full pollen baskets. The plant is jojoba.

 

I took this photograph on January 14, 2021, which seems pretty early in the season for bees. Maybe the early bee gets the pollen?

Hope you enjoyed these. Thank you so much for following Growing with Science in 2021. I really appreciate everyone who took time to comment and for your support.

Happy New Year!

 

 

Saguaros Flowering in September?

September 25, 2019 / / 1 Comment

I’ve been stalking a neighbor’s saguaro this week because it is flowering.

For those of you who don’t see these giant cacti every day, saguaros usually flower in June, not September.

The flowers usually open at night, but these are staying open well into the morning, which makes them accessible to day-active pollinators like these honey bees and the carpenter bee on the right.

With all the buds, looks like they’ll be enjoying flowers for a few more days at least.

Have you seen any flowers or bees this week?

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