Farming in action

Step 1: Milk the aphids.

I spent some time pottering around the garden this afternoon and noticed that a few of the flowers had black aphids along the stems. I thought they might do for a Blip before I sprayed them but once I had added the macro extension tubes to get a closer look I realised that there were ants climbing over them getting the little beads of liquid that the aphids were extruding. The ants themselves were only about quarter of an inch long so a combination of manual focus, a bit of a breeze and my holding the camera in one hand while steadying the flower with the other means the shot isn't as clear as it might be, but it was still fascinating to watch.