Bug Squad

It's a curious-looking insect, the tachinid fly. The first thing you notice are the thick, dark bristles covering its abdomen. By human standards, this insect, about the size of a house fly, is not pretty. No way, no how.

Patience. That's what it takes to capture images of syrphids, aka flower or hover flies. They are oh, so tiny and they move oh, so quickly. As the morning dawns, you wait, camera poised, near their preferred blossoms.

If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and walks like a duck, it's probably a duck. If it looks like a bee, buzzes like a bee, and visits flowers like a bee, it might not be a bee. It could be a fly, or more specifically, a syrphid or flower fly.

What's happening to our bees?

"Gossamer" means something sheer, light and delicate, as in gossamer fabric. You can also apply it to the wings of a carpenter bee. We captured this image of a male carpenter bee (Xylocopa tabaniformis) nectaring on lavender. The wings look sheer, fragile and airy.