Flowers and bees have a mutualistic relationship—the flower provides the nectar and the bee assists in pollination. Sometimes, though, bees will circumvent the process by drilling a hole in the side of the flower and gaining access to the nectar without touching the reproductive parts of the flower, a process sometimes called “nectar robbing.”
Last weekend, I encountered this bee, which looks to be a honeybee, repeatedly taking nectar from the side of a Salvia flower. In an earlier posting, I showed that it was a tight fit for a bumblebee to enter the flower from the front, but it nonetheless did its part in pollination. The honeybee apparently decided it was easier to take a shortcut and go directly to the nectar.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Great close up shots Mike – lovely focus.
Amazing photos…The information was new to me and I found it quite fascinating.
So what you’re saying this is basically a wanted poster!
Ah… the blue black salvia is a magnet for bees and hummers. Great shot!
Thanks. Indeed the salvia seemed to be attracting most of the remaining insects. We’re well into autumn, so there aren’t as many insects around as a month ago.
They do the same thing to jewelweed because the nectar is too deep in the spur for their tongues to reach. Hummingbirds don’t have a problem though, and they’re what the flowers are trying to attract. Nice Shots!
That lazy bum!
What an ingenious bee
Definitely a clever bee, though I am glad that most others assist the flowers with pollination.