Master Gardeners of Ventura County
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Master Gardeners of Ventura County

Posts Tagged: Agapostemon

A Metallic Green Surprise at Bodega Bay

A Nov. 5th trip to Bodega Bay's Doran Beach yielded a metallic green surprise. What was that foraging on a pink iceplant blossom near a path to the ocean? A metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, also called an...

A male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, foraging on iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, foraging on iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, foraging on iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up of a male metallic green sweat bee on an iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Close-up of a male metallic green sweat bee on an iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up of a male metallic green sweat bee on an iceplant on Nov. 5 at a Bodega Bay's Doran Beach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A female metallic green sweat bee nectaring on a purple coneflower in June 2011 at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. The female is solid green from head to thorax to abdomen, while the male's head and thorax are green, but not the abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A female metallic green sweat bee nectaring on a purple coneflower in June 2011 at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. The female is solid green from head to thorax to abdomen, while the male's head and thorax are green, but not the abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A female metallic green sweat bee nectaring on a purple coneflower in June 2011 at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. The female is solid green from head to thorax to abdomen, while the male's head and thorax are green, but not the abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, November 12, 2020 at 1:54 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling...There Must Be a Green Insect Nearby

When Irish eyes are smiling, it could be... St. Patrick's Day is approaching or A green insect is nearby  If you've ever seen the female metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, or the sand wasp, Bembix americana, you can't help but...

The female metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a purple coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The female metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a purple coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The female metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a purple coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, is partly green; its head and thorax are green, but not its abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, is partly green; its head and thorax are green, but not its abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male metallic green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, is partly green; its head and thorax are green, but not its abdomen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sand wasp, Bembix americana, foraging on a seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus) at Bodega Bay. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sand wasp, Bembix americana, foraging on a seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus) at Bodega Bay. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sand wasp, Bembix americana, foraging on a seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus) at Bodega Bay. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Friday, March 15, 2019 at 7:18 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources

Wearing o' the Green

On St. Patrick's Day, we see green. We crave green. We wear green. And the penalty for not wearing green? You get pinched. Not so with green sweat bees. As their common name implies, they're green. A metallic green. But no pinching allowed! The green...

A close-up of a male green sweet bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a coneflower, Rudbeckia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A close-up of a male green sweet bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a coneflower, Rudbeckia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A close-up of a male green sweet bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on a coneflower, Rudbeckia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, March 15, 2018 at 5:43 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources

May the Buzz Be With You

Did you feel the buzz in 2015? The honey bees, bumble bees, sunflower bees, sweat bees...what a year it was! It's time to walk down memory lane--or stray from the garden path--and post a few bee images from 2015. It wasn't all flowers and sunshine....

A female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, nectaring on cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenski, foraging on a tower of jewels. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenski, foraging on a tower of jewels. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenski, foraging on a tower of jewels. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, foraging on a Bacopa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A honey bee, Apis mellifera, foraging on a Bacopa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee, Apis mellifera, foraging on a Bacopa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Two sunflower bees battle it out: a male Svastra (larger bee delivers quick kick to a smaller male Melissodes. The flower is a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Two sunflower bees battle it out: a male Svastra (larger bee delivers quick kick to a smaller male Melissodes. The flower is a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Two sunflower bees battle it out: a male Svastra (larger bee delivers quick kick to a smaller male Melissodes. The flower is a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A praying mantis eating a bee, predator vs. prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A praying mantis eating a bee, predator vs. prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A praying mantis eating a bee, predator vs. prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Freeloader flies, family Milichiidae, and probably genus Desmometopa, dining on a honey bee, a spider's prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Freeloader flies, family Milichiidae, and probably genus Desmometopa, dining on a honey bee, a spider's prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Freeloader flies, family Milichiidae, and probably genus Desmometopa, dining on a honey bee, a spider's prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, December 31, 2015 at 4:42 PM

How Green Is Your Cosmos?

The vibrant colors of Cosmos, an annual flower with the same common name as its genus, are spectacular.  But we especially like the showstopping pink Cosmos with its bright yellow center. Well, sometimes, they have a green center--that's when an...

Long-distance view of a pink Cosmos with a
Long-distance view of a pink Cosmos with a "green" center. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Long-distance view of a pink Cosmos with a "green" center. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up view of a female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, on Cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Close-up view of a female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, on Cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up view of a female ultra green sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, on Cosmos. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The female ultra green sweat bee continues to forage. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The female ultra green sweat bee continues to forage. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The female ultra green sweat bee continues to forage. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, March 26, 2015 at 9:23 PM

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