Green-Eyed Flower Bee

Green-Eyed Flower Bee (Anthophora bimaculata)

Green-eyed flower bees are such high octane insects, rarely slowing down, so any opportunity I get to photograph a calm individual is a welcome one. I had previously managed to capture a photo of a male bee sleeping and this time I found a female.

There is a very small patch of heather near me which, when in flower, attracts a wide range of pollinators. I often visit it later in the day hoping that some of the insects on it will be less active and I couldn’t have timed it better in this instance. I watched this bee as it flew from flower to flower, getting gradually slower until it reached this one. It spent longer on this flower so I thought I might actually have a chance to get a shot of it. To my surprise it clamped its mandibles to one of the minute heather flowers it had been feeding on and assumed the familiar “I’m here for the night now” pose. Jackpot! I’m now not only going to get a photo but it’s going to be a stack (47 shots in total). I got close but not too close because I didn’t want to miss out on that pink heather background. I also got a side on view but that stack will have to wait in line for another day.

Prints are available here.

Video clip of a Green-Eyed Flower Bee clamped to a heather flower, to gauge its size