Master Gardeners of Ventura County
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Master Gardeners of Ventura County

Posts Tagged: Halictus

It's Pollinator Month: No Sweat?

In the sweltering heat of Solano County (100 degrees) during National Pollinator Month, how about an image of a sweat bee, genus Halictus, a tiny bee that's often overlooked in the world of pollinators. It's a social bee that nests in the soil....

A sweat bee, genus Halictus, sailing over a Coreopsis in a Vacaville pollinator garden. June is National Pollinator Month. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sweat bee, genus Halictus, sailing over a Coreopsis in a Vacaville pollinator garden. June is National Pollinator Month. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, genus Halictus, sailing over a Coreopsis in a Vacaville pollinator garden. June is National Pollinator Month. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Friday, June 7, 2024 at 11:58 AM
Focus Area Tags: Agriculture, Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

No Sweat....Just Pollen...

Look closely at a patch of California golden poppies and you may see a sweat bee (genus Halictus) collecting gold pollen. The pollen basket is on the hind legs but you'll see "gold" also dusting the head and abdomen. Native bee, commonly...

A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, collecting pollen from a California golden poppy, the state flower. Both the bee and the flower are natives of California. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, collecting pollen from a California golden poppy, the state flower. Both the bee and the flower are natives of California. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, collecting pollen from a California golden poppy, the state flower. Both the bee and the flower are natives of California. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, rolling in the pollen of a California golden poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, rolling in the pollen of a California golden poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, genus Halictus and family Halictidae, rolling in the pollen of a California golden poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at 7:57 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

Just a Sweat Bee Foraging on a Black-Eyed Susan

"Sweat bees have earned their common name from the tendency, especially of the smaller species,to alight on one's skin and lap up perspiration for both its moisture and salt content." So write University of California scientists in their award-winning...

A sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, foraging on a Black-E
A sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, foraging on a Black-E

A sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, foraging on a Black-Eyed Susan in a Vacaville, Calif. pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, moves around the Black-Eyed Susan. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, moves around the Black-Eyed Susan. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, moves around the Black-Eyed Susan. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, covered with pollen, takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, covered with pollen, takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, covered with pollen, takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A flameskimmer dragonfly, Libellula saturata, munches on a sweat bee, Halictus ligatus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A flameskimmer dragonfly, Libellula saturata, munches on a sweat bee, Halictus ligatus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A flameskimmer dragonfly, Libellula saturata, munches on a sweat bee, Halictus ligatus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2021 at 4:32 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

Sweat Bee: Overlooked and Underloved

Let's hear it for the sweat bee.  It's one of the many tiny bees that ought to be honored and recognized during Pollination Week, June 21-27, but it's often overlooked. We've been seeing many of this species, Halictus tripartitus, in our...

A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, nectaring on a tower of jewels (Echium wildpretii) in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, nectaring on a tower of jewels (Echium wildpretii) in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, nectaring on a tower of jewels (Echium wildpretii) in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, twists as it forages on mustard in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, twists as it forages on mustard in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, twists as it forages on mustard in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, June 10, 2021 at 3:00 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Yard & Garden

Dragonfly vs. Bee: Catch of the Day

The red flameskimmer dragonfly (Libellula saturata) waits oh-so-patiently atop a bamboo stick at the edge of the pollinator garden. She's in Vacaville, Calif., and the garden she is visiting today is a veritable oasis of blooms: Mexican sunflower...

A red flameskimmer dragonfly (Libellula saturata) with her  prey, a female sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, as identified by Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis. The gender of the flamekimmer identified by Kathy Claypool Biggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A red flameskimmer dragonfly (Libellula saturata) with her prey, a female sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, as identified by Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis. The gender of the flamekimmer identified by Kathy Claypool Biggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A red flameskimmer dragonfly (Libellula saturata) with her prey, a female sweat bee, Halictus ligatus, as identified by Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis. The gender of the flamekimmer identified by Kathy Claypool Biggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The red flameskimmer dragonfly adjusts her prey, a sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The red flameskimmer dragonfly adjusts her prey, a sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The red flameskimmer dragonfly adjusts her prey, a sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Beneath all of that pollen is a female sweat bee, the prey of this red flameskimmer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Beneath all of that pollen is a female sweat bee, the prey of this red flameskimmer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Beneath all of that pollen is a female sweat bee, the prey of this red flameskimmer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All gone. The red flameskimmer polishes off the last of the sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
All gone. The red flameskimmer polishes off the last of the sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

All gone. The red flameskimmer polishes off the last of the sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, July 5, 2017 at 4:34 PM

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