Carol DM
Sharing a photo from Dustin’s garden. The butterfly bush attracts many visitors. Not only butterflies, but bees, and what I believe to be a soldier beetle in this photo. This bee is called an eastern bumble bee.
They did not seem to mind the camera at all. I move slowly around the bees and try not to disturb them as they enjoy the pollen from the blooms.
The constant flying of the soldier beetler from flower to flower make them a valuable pollinator for any flower or or herb garden. They feed on nectar and pollen, and have no way to bite or sting humans. So, are soldier beetles good or bad? Yes, these are considered good for the garden.
I hope this is a soldier beetle I have captured in the photo. I need good insects for the garden!
Shared a tulip poplar bloom below with a small bee visitor. Have not identified this one yet. Looks like either a wasp or a bee.
Photo ©CarolDM
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Question of
Seen a soldier beetle in your garden before?
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Yes
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No
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Question of
Are you interested in identifying insects in your garden?
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Yes
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No
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Nice shoot with the bee…
All insects look quite the same to me without macro photos :p
Nice capture! 😀
It is hard to distinguish without looking very closely Thanks.
I have grown an interest in identifying many things these days.Great photo!
That is a good thing, thank you!
I suspect I should spend some time figuring out what bugs, are in our yard.
Only if you are curious. I know many are not and that is ok.
Last weekend I found a wasp nest on the underside of the deck.
I suspect knowing might be a good thing.
Be very careful around those nests, but you knew that.
I do!
I got stung by three before I could get the spray going. A day later I knocked the nest down and sealed it int a plastic bag.
Nasty little guys.
I can only identify some of the insects in our garden and won’t have exactly the same as you have. Nice photo.
I research often. Thanks Pam.
No its not easy to recognize some are very famous but some are very complicated
I do a lot of research on the computer.
I love taking pictures of these critters. I need to know what they do before I annihilate them
I just enjoy learning about nature.
The only time I see insects is when they eat away my garden – with the sole purpose of getting rid of them (lol)
All insects are not bad. These two in the photo are great pollinators.
Even bees are assets around.
Yes, that is what I meant about the bee in the photo.
I am trying to take macro photos but my camera is not that capable.
Sorry about that. I have a small Canon camera that does great with macros. A Canon PowerShot.
And if you have a phone camera, they take good macros as well.
Super shot. I think I’ve seen this insect before.
Thanks, I see them often but not sure what they are.
They are about the size of a housefly.
I have to put up with the Japanese beetles on all three Rose of Sharon bushes each year.
Sorry, the comment I was replying to has left the page.
I don’t know if I’ve seen exactly that, but there are too many in my garden
I don’t have too many this year, I have had worse years. The Japanese beetles are always bad.
I don’t know what varieties they just eat, my friend
And they can be a nuisance in your gardens.
Identifying was the whole impetus of my macro bug photography. Also for bird ID. Once you get to the book identifying from memory is often hopeless or guessing.
The butterfly bush is cool. What an attracter!
I understand completely Howard. Thanks, I now have two butterfly bushes and they stay covered in insects.
I try to take as many photos as possible so later I can identify from the photo.