RWatkins Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Could anyone help me identify this bee, or indeed tell me if it is actually a bee. I believe it is a mining bee of some sort but I can't find a definitive answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I am not sure if it is a bee. The rear body looks quite flat which I think is indicative of a hornet. I am no expert though. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Looks like a hoverfly to me. There are many varieties (subspecies?) that look different from each other depending on the country/location. The ones I see are smaller than a honeybee, with a flattened abdomen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I agree with Phillipe. It's a sweat bee. With the stripes it could be a Lasioglossum sp, possibly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWatkins Posted July 18, 2015 Author Share Posted July 18, 2015 I don't think it is a hover fly, although I won't discount it completely. I took some photos of a hover fly during the same session. It's behaviour didn't suggest hover fly either. Sweat bee looks like a good shout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Looks like a hoverfly to me. There are many varieties (subspecies?) that look different from each other depending on the country/location. The ones I see are smaller than a honeybee, with a flattened abdomen. Don't hover flies have flatter eyes than bees? They kinda look like tiny Hummers. I photographed what I thought was a bee the other day and discovered that it was really a hover/drone fly. There certainly are a bewildering number of different types of flies, plus to make matters worse, some have apparently mimicked the looks of bees (and vice versa). Mother Nature can be very crafty indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 It's easy to tell bees from hoverflies. Bees have longer, segmented antennae, hoverflies, even the bee mimic hoverflies, have short, stubby antennae. Lasioglossum calceatum - a sweat bee - long antennae Melanostoma scalare, a wasp mimic hoverfly. Short, club like antennae. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 It's easy to tell bees from hoverflies. Bees have longer, segmented antennae, hoverflies, even the bee mimic hoverflies, have short, stubby antennae. Lasioglossum calceatum - a sweat bee - long antennae Melanostoma scalare, a wasp mimic hoverfly. Short, club like antennae. Thanks for the hoverfly lesson. Very helpful. Fly eyes also look different to me, not quite as bulbous as bees' eyes, with a flat part at the top. Remarkable shots. Do you sing to your subjects in order to make them stay still? What's the trade secret (short of using chloroform)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Robinson Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Definitely a bee not a hoverfly or wasp, but given the hundreds of species, positive identification can be very difficult without a dead specimen and a magnifying glass. One fairly reliable way is comparing the pattern of veins on the wings - that's the nearest thing bees have to a fingerprint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I don't think it is a hover fly, although I won't discount it completely. I took some photos of a hover fly during the same session. It's behaviour didn't suggest hover fly either. Sweat bee looks like a good shout. Yes, this latest one is definitely a hoverfly. The other one looks a lot like the small bees that attacked my sliced apples covered in melted caramel at a theme park, once. I just swatted them away, while my daughter ran 50 yards down the walk screaming, trailing a stream of hungry bees. I laughed until I cried. I didn't know my non-athletic daughter could run so fast, or I would have encouraged her to run track. She never let go of her apples, though. Yum. I think they were the same as sweat bees, also the kind that will crawl into a soft drink can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 It's easy to tell bees from hoverflies. Bees have longer, segmented antennae, hoverflies, even the bee mimic hoverflies, have short, stubby antennae. Lasioglossum calceatum - a sweat bee - long antennae Melanostoma scalare, a wasp mimic hoverfly. Short, club like antennae. Thanks for the hoverfly lesson. Very helpful. Fly eyes also look different to me, not quite as bulbous as bees' eyes, with a flat part at the top. Remarkable shots. Do you sing to your subjects in order to make them stay still? What's the trade secret (short of using chloroform)? No singing involved - for which my neighbours and family are thankful - just patience. For example, for the Lasioglossum shot I sat by a patch of Sedum in my garden on a folding stool, 90mm macro and diffused flash on bracket, supported with elbows on knees and waited for the insects to come to me. It's easy to move around but you still have stability for framing the shot. Where I can I use a tripod, where I can't any stability aid is used. Flash doesn't freeze everything so the camera has to be stable to get good shots. I've even resorted to lying on the ground - which has it's own problems. Getting down is easy enough. Getting up again? Well, let's just say it's not as simple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I admire your dedication, John R. It obviously pays off. Fantastic bug images. Don't think I have the "right stuff" (or the right joints) for this type of photography. That said, is 90mm the ideal focal length for shooting insects? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I admire your dedication, John R. It obviously pays off. Fantastic bug images. Don't think I have the "right stuff" (or the right joints) for this type of photography. That said, is 90mm the ideal focal length for shooting insects? On a crop sensor camera, yes. It's enough working distance - I'm practised enough to get to macro ranges without disturbing the insects. You take a lot of shots but digital allows for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Any time you shoot insects you shoot bunches of frames, in hopes you get a couple of keepers. I've chased bees round and round a Crepe Myrtle, taken a hundred shots, sometimes only having a couple I was pleased with. Part of it is many times a flying insect leaves just as you are pressing the shutter. You get the plant/flower but no insect, or you get the tail of the insect as it flies out of the frame. It can be the hardest work, bar none. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Any time you shoot insects you shoot bunches of frames, in hopes you get a couple of keepers. I've chased bees round and round a Crepe Myrtle, taken a hundred shots, sometimes only having a couple I was pleased with. Part of it is many times a flying insect leaves just as you are pressing the shutter. You get the plant/flower but no insect, or you get the tail of the insect as it flies out of the frame. It can be the hardest work, bar none. Yes, doing this type of photography in film days must have been very expensive indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 So I guess insect photography has really changed in the hyperactive digital age. It sounds as if most bug photographers (John R. excluded) now get up late when the dew has dried and run around chasing the little critters while snapping dozens of images hoping for a keeper or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 So I guess insect photography has really changed in the hyperactive digital age. It sounds as if most bug photographers (John R. excluded) now get up late when the dew has dried and run around chasing the little critters while snapping dozens of images hoping for a keeper or two. Nah, you need to know the tricks of the trade (main trick: let the animals come to you instead of chasing them around ). Cheers, Philippe Or bribe them with pollen... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 So I guess insect photography has really changed in the hyperactive digital age. It sounds as if most bug photographers (John R. excluded) now get up late when the dew has dried and run around chasing the little critters while snapping dozens of images hoping for a keeper or two. Nah, you need to know the tricks of the trade (main trick: let the animals come to you instead of chasing them around ). Cheers, Philippe +1. Learn their habits and your success rate goes up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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