Ivy Visitors 17

Top of the ivy league today, the central image, is a honey bee. My first image of the day was the big garden/diadem spider eating her breakfast. As I was taking it a honey bee got caught in her web and started struggling violently to free itself. I expected her to come dashing out to wrap it but she didn't. I had time to switch to a faster shutter speed to capture the wriggling bee. As I knew that the spider already had a meal I freed the bee. It has lost all the pollen that it had collected.

Strangely, after seeing a hornet catch a bee yesterday, I saw a wasp catch one. I got a few shots and went to get the step-ladder for a closer look, by which time both were gone. I was very interested to see one fly, then another, land on the tussling pair.

I got two other different bees, not sure what they are. The whole bush was covered in bees and wasps. :)

Nice to get a tiny black beetle and a ladybird, even though I think it is a Harlequin. First visit from a marmalade hoverfly and a different Tachinid fly.