#support native pollinators

[jenfoundabug]

Gorgeous creature <3

I planted a small patch of native wildflowers this summer, and it's amazing how many more species I'm seeing. This is a male Agapostemon texanus, a type of sweat bee. Females of this species are solid metallic green and don't have yellow and black stripes. They're quite beautiful but even more skittish than the males. Northern California, US

[jenfoundabug]

This creature is a tricksy one. Over half of you thought it would sting, and this FLY thanks you for the compliments on its mimicry <3

This is a long-horned yellowjacket fly (Sphecomyia vittata), aptly named because it evolved to cosplay a yellowjacket (a type of predatory social wasp). These flies can’t bite or sting, but as very convincing mimics, they can safely visit flowers to feed without being disturbed. I, too, thought this was a wasp, until I was looking at photos later. There are several giveaways. You can see its halteres in the first picture. These are small club-shaped organs that replace the second pair of wings on flies and are used for stabilization during flight. The fly doesn't have a "waist" like a wasp, and its antennae have a small number of segments with an arista (filament) on the end. The head is also distinctly fly-shaped, and it doesn't have large mandibles. Here's an actual yellowjacket for comparison: (Western yellowjacket; Vespula pensylvanica)

[jenfoundabug]

Bleeehhhhh Why are bumblebees so damn cute? Bombus bimaculatus (two-spotted bumblebee) Northeastern Pennsylvania, US

[jenfoundabug]

Fly feeding on nectar and/or pollen. I very often see more flies on flowers than Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, etc) or Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). Let's save not just the bees, but all the bugs, regardless of how they look <3 (with exceptions when it comes to public health, invasive species, agriculture, etc) Species unknown, superfamily Oestroidea Northeastern Pennsylvania, US

[jenfoundabug]

Stop the fly hate <3 After bees, flies are thought to be one of the most important pollinator groups.

Unidentified Diptera sp., possibly genus Siphona Northeastern Pennsylvania, US

[jenfoundabug]

Banded longhorn beetle (Typocerus velutinus). Adults of this species visit flowers to eat pollen and nectar and can function as pollinators.

Northeastern Pennsylvania

[jenfoundabug]

Bumble goes nom nom

Bombus griseocollis in Pennsylvania, July 2023

[jenfoundabug]

Euodynerus foraminatus, a species of potter or mason wasp.

Northeastern PA