
Blue Orchard Bee, a photo by Fergiemoto on Flickr. (click on photo to enlarge)
Linking up with Camera Critters, Your Sunday Best and Macro Monday.
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a speck in nature
tiny but not trivial
interdependence of life
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Bees, in general, are the major type of pollinator for flowering plants. They are the “predominant and most economically important group of pollinators in most geographical regions….Pollination is not just a free service but one that requires investment and stewardship to protect and sustain it.” (http://www.unep.org)
Recently, I noticed several of these dark-colored bees attracted to our lupine flowers and snapped this photo, among others. What is the significance of this little Blue Orchard Bee? Recent concerns about the decline of the honeybee population, along with the blue orchard bee’s highly efficient pollination, such as with tree fruits, have increased interest in the blue orchard bee as an alternative orchard pollinator to the honeybee. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), about one mouthful in three in the diet directly or indirectly benefits from honeybee pollination! This includes nuts, berries, fruits and vegetables. It’s amazing how we, and many things in nature, are dependent on such small yet important insects.
There are various reasons for the decline of the important honeybee colonies, but a couple of suggestions that the public can take to help the honeybees and other bees is to:
- Not use pesticides indiscriminately, especially during mid-day when they are foraging for nectar, and
- Plant, and encourage the planting of good nectar sources
I saw a quote that read, “Everything in the world, no matter what it is, depends on something else for its existence.” Can you think of a case where this is not true? So far, I haven’t been able to.
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This is for the letter “B” story challenge by Frizztext, to share a short story or reflection, even an aphorism using a word tagged with each letter of the alphabet.
References:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bee
- http://www.unep.org/dewa/Portals/67/pdf/Global_Bee_Colony_Disorder_and_Threats_insect_pollinators.pdf
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmia_lignaria
- http://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/factsheet/blue-orchard-bee.pdf
- http://www.ars.usda.gov/Research/docs.htm?docid=18333
- http://www.ars.usda.gov/News/docs.htm?docid=15572
- http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2010/101217.htm
Photo is very nice and your post also. Your call is right. The honeybees are the best to pollinate.
wow!
Wonderful catch, Fergie! I love your composition, and the haiku!
Thank you for the suggestions of helping the honeybees and other bees! This is a wonderful informative post!
An admirable picture and a note written with a good message.
A unique flower and bee. Wonderful to capture them both in one.
Thanks for sharing at YSB this week. xo
What a great shot. There are many bees in my garden but I can’t take such nice shots. 🙂
This is a wonderful post with great information and I know many people read your blog..this is a tough time for pollinators and we do need them. I made a special effort to plant for pollinators this year..love the photo and the poem…thank you for this post..Michelle
A great shot of the little pollinator at work!
May the bee be beatified.
Lovely image and great capture of the bee.
Wow – fabulous shot.
Love to see bees up close… since I’m allergic to them, I don’t ever want to get too close, but I can with macro photos! 🙂
that is so lovely! 🙂
Dropping by from Macro Monday…Flowers in the Morning
Beautiful shot!
I can name one more “interdependence”: looking forward to your posts which always make me smile! Thank you!
thank you for your focus on BEE colonies!
What a lovely shot of a pretty-coloured bee.
Very nice!
Awesome macro!
Fabulous shot!
Super photo Fergie…and your commentary is spot on. The bees are so important to life on earth. Well done!
Brilliant, I would be far too slow to capture this!
A beauty of a bee photograph!
wow, wonderful photo and your haiku is just perfect.
Nice shot of the orchid flower and dark colored bee. It is said honeybees will disapper in a near future.I think your suggestion is very important.
Bees are fascinating creatures and vital our ecosystem. Beautiful photo with colors that are mesmerizing.
What a beautiful shot.
I love the photo and I agree completely with the quote. Even though I’m allergic to bees I admire and appreciate them. Too many people often overlook how connected we are to everything in this world.
Amazing photo! I saw a documentary which showed some farmers in China hand-pollinating their orchards because the bees have disappeared from their area – an unbelievable cost to the world if the bee populations continue to shrink – apparently a virus is to blame for the disappearance of some bee populations but it’s origins are unknown
Jewelry of nature… Great post. Thank you dear Fergie, love, nia
Super shot! What a curious little bee. Very different from our bees over here.
wow, great detail!
Stunning …:P
Beautiful photo and haiku, once again, and very interesting and informative. I have shared on FB and Twitter.
An important message for all of us in this post – “tiny but not trivial” – so true. And another amazing photo!
A wonderful shot!
Love the bronze shades on the wings!
We do not realise how dependent we really are on every other species on earth! Thanks for the reminder Fergiemoto.