Blue banded bee

Amegilla cingulata - blue banded bee male (five blue bands, female has four).

Update - done some research so the text has been modified.

A lot of decent shots to choose from today, so a reasonable safari. Notable failures were the ant, still cannot get the shot that I am looking for. I have been trying to get a shot of a particular mosquito, took a whole bunch of shots today, didn't even come close. I'll just keep trying until I figure it out. It is mostly a lighting problem as mozzies like subdued lighting.

I chose this blip because of the strange behavior of this attractive bee. The bee seemed healthy, flying around this small plant with two purple blooms, in fact the same plant that I got the psyche butterfly shot last month. I always stop by this plant as it attracts a lot of insect attention.

The bee clamped onto the stem of the plant and proceeded to wriggle its abdomen. After a while it flew off and then came back to the same spot and repeated. You can see in the image how the bee is clamped by its jaws and the legs are not actually touching the plant stem. I have seen bees clamp like this before, but assumed that they were sleeping. Comments welcome on what you think is going on here.

After a little research, I found out that this behavior causes what is known as buzz pollination. The bee shakes the plant and releases the pollen. Plants have evolved to take advantage of this behavior, particularly the tomato plant apparently.

The blue banded bee is a solitary bee, building its nest in sandstone, mud or mortar gaps. These bees are superb fliers and can hover stationary, great for blippers! Their wing beat seems to be faster and they make a loud buzz that is particularly disturbing when one gets too close to your ear, but I am used to this now and recognize the buzz as a blip opportunity.

Dave