Latest photos

Detail head red mason bee (osmia rufa), made with magnification factor 6 and f/14. It is a single picture made in our garden, using a Canon 7D, a Canon MP-E 65 mm f/2.9 and a Canon 2x teleconverter. The bee was alive and kicking. Osmia rufa is a species of solitary bee, also known as the red mason bee due to its habit of using mud to build small cavities within its nest. The species is most active during the spring and early summer although it can be seen as far as late June. Despite being classed as solitary, these bees are gregarious. The female is larger/broader than the male and has 2 large horns on the head.The female has a much smaller sting than honeybees or wasps.The male has no sting. The size is around 10 mm (source Wikipedia).

Portrait male marmalade hoverfly, made with magnification 6 and f/14 using a Canon 7D, a Canon MP-E 65mm/2.8 and a Canon 2x teleconverter. Episyrphus balteatus, sometimes called the marmalade hoverfly, is a relatively small hoverfly (9–12 mm) of the Syrphidae family, widespread throughout all continents. Like most other hoverflies it mimics a much more dangerous insect, the solitary wasp, though it is a quite harmless species. The upper side of the abdomen is patterned with orange and black bands. Two further identification characters are the presence of secondary black bands on the 3rd and 4th dorsal plates and of faint greyish longitudinal stripes on the thorax. E. balteatus can be found throughout the year in various habitats, including urban gardens, visiting flowers for pollen and nectar. They often form dense migratory swarms, which may cause panic among people for its resemblance to wasps. It is among the very few species of flies capable of crushing pollen grains and feeding on them. The larva is terrestrial and feeds on aphids. As in most other hoverflies, males can be easily identified by their holoptic eyes, i.e., left and right compound eyes touching at the top of the head (source: Wikipedia).

Cheilosia male hoverfly on a little yellow flower, made with magnification factor 8 and f/10 using a Canon 7D, the Canon macrolens MP-E 65mm/f2.8 and a Canon 2x teleconverter. Hoverflies, sometimes called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. In some species, the larvae are saprotrophs, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects (source: Wikipedia).