#nationalpollinatorweek2020

[norfolknaturalist]

Final Day of #nationalpollinatorweek : A Male Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) bringing a Sphinx Moth caterpillar to its nest in the Birch Tree in my yard. Orioles eat fruit, nectar and insects. While feeding on nectar, their bodies become dusted in pollen and they act as pollinators for many plants, especially in Mexico and South America where they spend their Winters. . . . . . . . #nature #ontario #nationalpollinatorweek2020 #baltimoreoriole #orioles #oriolesofinstagram #ornithology #birdphotography #nesting #nestingseason #birdnest #naturephotography #naturephoto #norfolkwild #blognorfolk #simcoeontario #norfolkcounty #dscvrnc #pollinatorweek #pollinators #birdpollination #wildlifeathome #wildlifeofinstagram #birdphotos (at Simcoe, Ontario) https://www.instagram.com/p/CB_ZGRQpUmL/?igshid=19ra58ff9m9c1

[norfolknaturalist]

This week is #nationalpollinatorweek and to celebrate I'm going to be posting a different pollinator each day. I'm hoping to showcase some of the diversity of animals (note: I didn't say "insects") which perform the act of pollination for flowering plants. Pollination is basically the transport of pollen from one flower to another, and allows flowering plant species to reproduce. Today's Pollinator is a bee, the Ligated Furrow Bee (Halictus ligatus). This species has an incredibly large range, from the Arctic Circle to Northern South America. These bees make their nests in the ground, sometimes with multiple entrances. Remarkably among the social insects, Halictus workers all retain the ability to lay viable eggs, making each worker a potential queen of her own. In fact, if the queen dies, any worker can assume her position. Most other social bees have workers with undeveloped egg-laying abilities so that if the queen is lost, there can be no more workers produced in that colony. . . . . . . . #nature #ontario #nationalpollinatorweek2020 #norfolkwild #blognorfolk #pollination #pollinators #socialinsects #halictus #halictusligatus #halictidae #socialbees #eusocial #beesofinstagram #bees🐝 #macrophotography #macromonday #macrophoto #macroinsect #invert_macro #insects_of_our_world (at Simcoe, Ontario) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBvEuXpgCd5/?igshid=11ny6ehxuaskt