The UC Davis Aboretum--particularly the Storer Garden--is full of color--and sunflower bees.
A recent trip to see the New England Asters (Aster novae-angliae from the Asteraceae or sunflower family) yielded a Nikon moment: fuzzy-wuzzy sunflower bees foraging on the striking purple flowers.
The sunflower bee (Diadasia enavata), family Apidae, is a specialist bee instead of a generalist. You'll see it on members of the sunflower family, such as the asters, daisies and sunflowers. Unlike honey bees,it doesn't go for the sage, lavender and catmint.
The sunflower bee is tiny but the sunflower family is b-i-g. How big? It includes more than 1,600 genera and 23,000 species, making it the second largest family of flowering plants.
The sunflower bees would definitely have "a field day" in a field of sunflowers.
Attached Images:
Sunflower Bee
Moving Around
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