- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
When you venture into your pollinator garden, look for the beauty, color, diversity and the intensity that surrounds you. You will be astounded.
- A honey bee nectaring on lavender in a soft-pastel scenario.
- A katydid nymph crawling (backlit) on a blanketflower, Gaillardia.
- A Gulf Fritillary butterfly, Agraulis vanillae, nectaring on Lantana
- A praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, perched on a Cosmo
- A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, exiting a lavender patch.
You're the gardener, and you'll be using your...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
What insects did you see during the Solar Eclipse, dubbed "The Great North American Eclipse?" And what were they doing?
In some parts of North America, as the moon passed between the earth and sun, folks saw a total solar eclipse. But here in Solano County, California, totality it was not.
Partial.
We watched the Great North America Eclipse as the moon took a tiny bite out of the sun.
And then a queen bumble bee buzzed into our pollinator garden just as the moon helped itself to another bite.
Bite of the moon or bite of the bumble bee?
Game over.
The bumble bee won (well, just for a few minutes) and then we returned to the solar eclipse.
The bumble bee...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The monarch migration is well underway. The iconic butterflies fluttering into California from the Pacific Northwest engage in "nectar stops" to fuel their flight to their overwintering sites along coastal California.
They are not the only ones seeking nectar.
Monarch: "Sweet! Look what I found! Nectar! Did someone plant this patch of zinnias just for me?"
Honey Bee: (Buzzing in) "Share, Monarch! I need some of that nectar to take home to my colony. Winter's coming and my queen and my sisters need more nectar to tide us over until spring."
Monarch: "Sorry, Bee. I'm on a tight flight schedule and you can always get your nectar...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
And just like that, a female monarch butterfly fluttered into our Vacaville pollinator garden this morning, Aug. 10, and left a dozen or so calling cards: precious eggs.
We earlier saw a male monarch patrolling the garden on the morning of July 23, but he left to go find the girls.
So, total number of monarchs sighted in our garden so far this year: 2. (In 2016, we counted more than 300 eggs and caterpillars.)
Ms. Monarch deposited eggs on three milkweed plants: a narrow-leafed milkweed, Asclepias fascicularis, and two tropical milkweeds, Asclepias curassavica. She favored a lone tropical milkweed thriving in a planter. It's already attracted honey bees, leafcutter...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
It was a little late.
The first flameskimmer of the year usually arrives in our yard in early April.
Not this year. The species, Libellula saturata, was late.
The easily recognized red dragonfly, also known as "the firecracker skimmer," touched down in our yard today, May 24.
She perched on a bamboo stick in our pollinator garden, close to a fish pond, and eyed her surroundings.
It's amazing to watch them grab a flying insect and return to the perch to devour it.
Dragonflies belong to the order Odonata, which means "toothed one" in Greek.
Danish zoologist