Tootfinder

Hornfaced bee (Osmia cornifrons) using mud to cap a nest at one of my insect hotels. Called the bean-flower bee (mame-ko bachi) in Japan because the balls of pollen and nectar they pack inside stems for their larvae to eat are as tasty as a dessert made from honey and soybean flour. The species was introduced to North America in the 1970s as a way to increase productivity of apple orchards. #InsectHotel #BeeHotel #pollination #bees #osmia #insects #orchard #gardening

Here's the first bee to visit my mud pan. Possibly a Lasioglossum based on the relatively sparse hairs on abdominal tergites. It's interesting that she took a water break during foraging. #bees #lasioglossum #halictidae #hymenoptera #insects #nature #inaturalist #macro #pollen #pollination https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/363160234

Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) flower in the female phase, with anthers still packed into a ball that looks like an osage orange. Mostly pollinated by beetles and flies attracted to the unpleasant odor. I'm hoping for fruit this year. #pawpaw #fruit #botany #flowers #tree #nature #pollination #annonaceae #gardening

The rumors are true — Houdini flies are extremely fond of cheap malbec. Blog post forthcoming with tips on trap design, but if you have an insect hotel and want to kill these kleptoparasites, go get yourself a bottle ASAP. #InsectHotel #BeeHotel #bees #flies #osmia #wine #insects #malbec #pollination