This month I had two visits to Taynish NNR within the space of a week and they couldn’t have been more different, writes Caroline Anderson. The first visit, on the 4th of July followed a period of torrential rain and pretty well everything was taking its cue from this moth: However, there were lots of […]
What a difference a week makes! — Scottish pollinators
When I was photographing bees on Monday at Green Spring Gardens, I had no idea that it was the start of Pollinator Week (22-28 June 2020), “an international celebration of the valuable ecosystem services provided by bees, birds, butterflies, bats and beetles,” according to the pollinator.org website. All I knew was that I love bees […]
Pollinator Week 2020 — Mike Powell
We have always tried to make our garden as bee friendly as possible – we garden organically, there are plenty of weeds providing nectar through most of the year and we put up bee hotels. We’ve had these regular bee hotels dotted around the garden for a few years and they’ve proved very popular with […]
Bee ‘n’ Bees — Too Lazy To Weed
Nebraska Pollinator Week is June 22-28. To recognize pollinators importance to the world as we know it a number of fun activities and training opportunities have been scheduled during the month of June. Check them all out at https://www.nebraskapollinatorweek.org/ Thanks in advance for your support!! Neil
Celebrate Nebraska Pollinator Week — Nebraska Lepidoptera: A Butterfly Big Year
I saw a wasp upon a wall And did not like his face at all: And so the creature had no time To wonder whether he liked mine. ‘Plain Murder’, A.G. Prys-Jones. The common wasp (Vespula vulgaris) and its close relative, the German wasp (Vespula germanica), are not likely candidates for the most loved […]
The unfairly maligned wasps — Scottish pollinators
When we watch a bee heavy with pollen lumbering away from a flower, we may be tempted to think it is purposely doing the plant a favour. But there is nothing altruistic here; the bee will try to keep for itself as many pollen grains as possible to provide the proteins that are essential for […]
via Brooms, baskets and happy accidents — Scottish pollinators
This rarely seen lichen crab spider, aka running crab spider (Philodromus margaritatus), was spotted recently on a bench near Loch Ness. It lives on trunks of trees or even electricity pylons covered with lichens. It has also been found on garden apple trees. If you can imagine it standing on a patch of lichen, it […]
The naming of moths is a difficult matter It isn’t just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I’m mad as a hatter When I tell you a moth must have two different names Entomologist John W. Brown, inspired by T.S. Elliot Some people are intrigued by scientific names, and others […]
Yesterday I noticed a big bumblebee inside a daffodil. I think she had spent the night in there and gradually she climbed out and on top of the flower. The daffodil was quickly visited by honeybees and mason bees and other insects. There was an awful lot of activity in a small world. The daffodils […]
The sun is shining and the garden is starting to look lovely. The wind is from the east so when you venture out it’s not as warm as you think but the bees don’t seem to mind. This last week I’ve noticed more and more Hairy-footed Flower Bees (Anthophora plumipes). They love the pulmonaria. These […]
