Bug Blog
A Passion for Passion Flowers
Honey bees are passionate about passion flowers (Passiflora). The intricate tropical flower is their private merry-go-round, their favorite hide 'n seek place, their gathering spot. If you've been...
Honey bees foraging on a passion flower blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
So many bees, so little time. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
From the top, the passion flower blossom looks like an intricate merry-go-round. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Bumble Bees at Bodega
If you're on your way to Bodega Bay in Sonoma County, stop at Bodega Head and see all the yellow-faced bumble bees on a yellow coastal plant, Eriophyllum, commonly known as the woolly sunflower. The...
Bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenski, on woolly sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Close-up of bumble bee, vosnesenski. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
This yellow-faced bumble bee is packing red pollen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Purple Coneflower Never Looked So Good
You never know what you'll see on a purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea).Honey bees. Check. Sweat bees. Check. Hummingbirds. Check. But sometimes these rough-and-tumble blossoms are graced with...
Western tiger swallowtail on a purple coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Western tiger swallowtail spreads its wings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Lying in Wait
They're ambush predators. Here you are, a bee, touching down on a flower and little do you know there's a patient and persistent crab spider lying in wait. Sometimes they're camouflaged,...
Crab spider on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Crab spider on a gold coin. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Crab spider on sedum. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
That's One Beautiful Butterfly
First the lantana, and then the passion flower vine. The Gulf Fritillary butterflies (Agraulis vanillae) flutter daily around our backyard. They stop for a little nectar from lantana (family...
Gulf Fritillary butterfly on lantana. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Another view of the Gulf Fritillary. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Side view (underside) of Gulf Fritillary about to lay an egg on a passion flower vine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)