If you had asked me two days ago if I had ever seen an Australian native bee I would have said "No". I knew next to nothing about native bees and had no idea they were happily buzzing away in my own garden until yesterday. This morning I found they were still enjoying my garden (which may well be their home). Then I noticed a larger bee.....
These are Blue Banded Bees, another species of Australian native bee which are larger than the first native bees I "discovered", have a furry golden thorax and quite different eyes. I have found quite a number of both species in the front and back yard today.
They love feeding on the nectar from many different flowers in the garden, the Australian Everlasting Daisies proving to be quite popular today! I'm learning to move slowly, take time to stand still and listen as well as look when I take a walk around the garden.
Sharing at Camera Critters, Today's Flowers, I Heart Macro, The Simple Things, Macro Monday, Sweet Shot Tuesday,
Shoot Edit Submit (weekly winner - first photo).
Wunderbar und grossartid diese Macros...
ReplyDeleteLiebe Grüsse aus der Schweiz
Hans-Peter
Very nice macro's and lovely colors.....great shots Karen.
ReplyDeleteThat first image is just magical...beautiful colors on the flower and amazing details on the bee.
ReplyDeleteGreat captures.
These are lovely!!
ReplyDeleteOh wow, what a find & such a pretty bee, well done, love Posie
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness...sooooo very nice macro's...I liked all your pictures...
ReplyDeleteGreetings Karin
The first one let the sun shine in the room . Really great one. Keep clicking.
ReplyDeleteAwesome captures of the bees and the flowers are all just gorgeous. Great photos, have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThese are lovely, and such perfect focus on the bees! Love the daisies too! Have a wonderful day
ReplyDeletebeautiful shots! have a nice day :)
ReplyDeleteSuch wonderful photos... are these strawflowers? They are so beautiful! Larry
ReplyDeleteIt is strange how the same animal can look so different depending to the background. Great pictures.
ReplyDeleteGreetings,
Filip
Fantastic captures of the bees and flowers! So colorful! I can almost smell the flowers from here!! Enjoy your weekend and the sunshine!
ReplyDeleteSylvia
Gorgeous captures of bees, Karen! You have so much colour in your garden. It's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteYour photos make me want to visit Australia. Such amazing beauty all captured expertly with your camera!
ReplyDeleteYou have the loveliest yard, Karen. Just simply lovely. I love reading your blog because I always know that not only will I see beautiful images, but I'll learn something new about them, too. :)
ReplyDeletewow....you got some amazing shots of both the bee and the flowers.
ReplyDeletei LOVE your background music, it's very soothing!!
Absolutely stunning shots.
ReplyDeleteIt's wonderful to go around the world and see the different types of bees. You have some beauties here, lovely photos of them.
ReplyDeleteWOw. Are those bees or wasps? I'm on the otherside of the world here. Our bees (with stingers on their bums)are fuzzy. The wasps (with biters because they are carnivores) are smooth.
ReplyDeleteCRAZY!
Those flowers look amazing!
~Monika : )
I love the monochromatic spread!
ReplyDeleteYour photos are very beautiful! Great shots of the bees too. The blue-banded bees fascinate me and I have them buzzing around my coleus blooms most of the time.
ReplyDeleteSo beautiful. It's winter here in Victoria BC so I love being able to see bees on flowers. Your blog is special.
ReplyDeleteLovely shots.
ReplyDeleteMy critter post. Please come and see.
The flowers are just gorgeous and the bees are an added bonus! Nice shots!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful series of shots.
ReplyDeletePink Bougainvillea
Both bees look amazing. But the second one looks so different. I love that shot..
ReplyDeleteHugs, Linda
you have captured them brilliantly!
ReplyDeletethey look drunk and quite content!
your shots are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThey insects on the flowers lookes very beautiful.
ReplyDeletehave a nice sunday
absolutely gorgeous! your brightly coloured photos are such a contrast to the cold/grey days here...they brighten my week! :) thanks for linking up as always!
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed!
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous set of photos you've got here!
Wonderful blog!
Amazing photos of the bees. I am fascinated by the Blue Banded Bee, I have never seen any here that remotely resemble that one. Great macros and I love all your flowers.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your visit. It is an honor to me!
ReplyDeleteI'm following you, because I really like your blog!
Thank you again!
BShell
Ja lubi biegać za pszczołami i robić im zdjęcia na kwiatkach.Wasze są troszkę inne, od tych co fruwają u nas. Piękne zdjęcia. Pozdrawiam.
ReplyDeleteI like to run for the bees and make pictures on them are a little different kwiatkach.Wasze, from those who fly with us. Beautiful pictures. Yours.
What luscious shots! That bee is a lovely fellow - and without them, our flowers would not exist...
ReplyDeleteGreat colors!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful macro photo.
ReplyDeleteMarit , Norway.
You had me at bees...I just wrote about and painted bees today. They are a fascinating lot for sure.. Their rules and the way they run their communities..we all could learn a lot... Those are great pics... In the blue banded one you can see their little pollen/nectar baskets on her legs...really cool.
ReplyDeleteLoved seeing bees I have never seen before.
T
What stunning photos! Thanks so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteenjoyed so much your photos today; some flowers seem to have been drawn with a pencil... really beautiful
ReplyDeletecool. How fun to discover new species. :) The second bee looks quite weird. :)
ReplyDeleteYour photographs are beautiful. I love the music too. The combo reminds me of a feature on CBS Sunday Morning - my favorite.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness. That flower is absolutely magnificent. I am so thankful for bees! I can't believe how important they are to our world. : )
ReplyDeleteStunning photos!
ReplyDeleteAll is well with me and my garden, thank you. I have returned to work and a little slow to post on my blog at present. My garden is still a little sad from the hail stone damage, but nothing that wont mend eventually. I must get the camera out and about tonight after work, it should be a lovely day today to do so.
Take care
Leanne
These pictures are really beautiful, lovely colors!
ReplyDeleteMoving slowly...standing still...listening - for some reason, these actions are often so hard to do or remember to do. I have to remind myself constantly but, most times, I forget. Maybe this should be one of my New Year's resolutions I'm still working on compiling. Outstanding photos, beautifully sharp!
ReplyDeleteTerrific shots, and interesting little blue banded bees.
ReplyDeleteThese are beautiful crisp close ups. Those bees are very different from one another. The flowers are so lovely, no wonder the bees like them.
ReplyDeleteYou have a lot of beautiful images. A great blog.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting my blog today.
I think I could learn something about patience from you. These macros are stunning - what great captures of the complexity of a piece of God's good creation !
ReplyDeleteA wonderful post with excellent macro shots!
ReplyDeleteGreat macro shots Sunshine!
ReplyDeleteAnd I love the bees, you have capture them beautifully.
Greetings from a wintery Holland,
Anna :-))
Hi there - great shots - we get the little blue banded bees in our garden as well - but I have not managed to get any pictures yet.
ReplyDeleteYours set the bar very high!
Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne
I saw one of those blue banded bees yesterday for the first time too! Gorgeous little creatures, but so fast I did not get a good shot. Thanks for your comments on my blog too.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful shots of the bees and the flowers! Like them very much!
ReplyDeleteI don't blame the bees if they like to stay in your garden your flowers are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteMacro Monday
Fantastic details in these images!
ReplyDeleteHappy MM
Great shots... I found bees very tricky to get right last summer, they seemed too active. Every time I got the focus sorted they buzzed off, quite literally.
ReplyDeleteMollyxxx
These photos are just stunning! Those bees are certainly something else and your garden is lovely. :D
ReplyDeletewow I've never seen bees that look like that! Your pictures of them are great! It's so hard to focus on a moving bee but you did a great job!
ReplyDeleteOh thanks for bringing some sunshine, gorgeous images, and beautiful music to my life
ReplyDeleteOooooh these pictures are amazing!! I really like the ones with the bee and the flower. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteReally impressive captures! I remember discovering bees last spring, but I found them tricky to capture. Great job!
ReplyDeleteOh my, these photos are spectacular. I love the bright colors, too. It is just what I needed in the middle of our dull dreary winter. :)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your win!! The photo is absolutely amazing.
ReplyDeletewow! I am just amazed at the beautiful clarity and detail you continually capture! i so love all your pics....and didn't realize until just now that your picture of the bee on the flower was the winner i've been admiring over at shoot.edit.submit. congrats!!
ReplyDelete