Bill Sebastian Loc: NC

Cropped photos of two bumblebees in our flower garden.

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Bob Mevis Loc: Plymouth, Indiana

Very nice. By the laws of physics bumble bees shouldn't be able to fly. Simply amazing isn't it.

rick_n_wv Loc: Charleston WV

Nice! Love the flowers reflection in the eyes. That is really nice. Thanks for sharing.

relbugman Loc: MD/FL/CA/SC

These are very nice photos. My comments are in no way critical of them, nor of what viewers find particularly interesting. I think these are carpenter bees, another, quite separate family of bees than bumblers. They gouge long tunnels in wood and fill them with a series of leaf-wrapped pollen with single eggs, separated by barriers of chewed wood and dried saliva. Then they leave to repeat the process again in a new, laboriously gouged tunnel. Interestingly, the oldest will be at the inner end of the tunnel, and will mature first. All the new-bees will wait patiently for a week or so, then start to wriggle around, and this will alert all to start to dig their way back out of the tunnel. Any who are late in maturing or have died will get chewed through in the process, and all the live ones will exit in a row. The eye patterns are formed by the reflections in the eye itself, not reflections of the flowers, a characteristic of this family of bees, like bare black abdomens, unlike bumbles. I think yours are males, they seem to have yellow patches below the antennae; females have black there.

Blenheim Orange Loc: Michigan

Genus Xylocopa - "wood cutters" in Greek. Well done. Good catch.

Mike

Bill Sebastian Loc: NC

I think you may be exactly right. We have carpenter bees that bore in the eaves of our roof. Just didn’t know they also ‘visit’ flowers. I did think they’re eyes looked like carpenter bee eyes. You explained why, thanks!

Bill Sebastian Loc: NC

See my comment above, meant to reply to you. Thanks so much for correctly identifying these as carpenter bees!

UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

Wonderful shots!

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

Nice close-ups!

Tazzy Loc: Tampa area

Very nice

Earnest Botello Loc: Hockley, Texas

Great shots, Bill.

JeffDavidson Loc: Originally Detroit Now Los Angeles

Nice. And, what Bob said.

TheLensMan Loc: Jense Beach, Florida

Great pictures and wonderful detail!!

Stash Loc: South Central Massachusetts

Very nice.

Blair Shaw Jr Loc: Dunnellon,Florida

Wonderful close-ups. Nice Job.