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Posts Tagged ‘bumble bee’

Tight squeeze

Posted in Bees, Birds, Flowers, Insects, Photography, Summer, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 24, 2024| 2 Comments »

The entrance to a partially-open flower on a trumpet vine was so narrow that a bumblebee really struggled to gain access to the sweet goodness inside last Thursday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Eventually the bee was able to wiggle its way inside and add to the pollen baskets on its hind legs.

I could not help but recall how much easier it is for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris) to access the nectar in trumpet vine flowers using their long, slender bills. I have not yet been able to photograph any hummingbirds this season, but thought that I would reprise a photo from an August 2015 blog posting entitled “Hummingbird and trumpet vine.” Click on the link to see some additional photos of hummingbirds feeding on trumpet vines and learn more about my encounter that day.

bumblebee

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Gathering pollen

Posted in Bees, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 4, 2024| 3 Comments »

This bumble bee was busily filling its pollen sacs and sucking up nectar when I spotted it recently during a visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I cannot identify the plant on which the bee was feeding, but I love its beautiful colors and the blurry bokeh balls that were created in the out-of-focus areas of the plant.

As many of you know, when you move in close to a subject, the depth of field becomes really narrow, which means that only certain elements will be in sharp focus. My goal as a photographer is to try to make sure that the most critical areas, which usually include the eyes of the subject, are in focus. In this case, I was delighted that both the eye and the extended proboscis are relatively sharp.

bumble bee

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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