Posts Tagged: Penstemon

Welcome, Teddy Bear Bee

If you've never seen the "teddy bear bee," keep an eye out for it. A fuzzy golden bee with green eyes, it's the male Valley carpenter bee (Xylocopa varipuncta). Last Friday we saw it foraging in the half-acre Haagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven on Bee Biology...

A male Valley carpenter bee (Xylocopa varipuncta)sips nectar from a foothill penstemon, (Penstemon heterophyllus) in the Haagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male Valley carpenter bee (Xylocopa varipuncta)sips nectar from a foothill penstemon, (Penstemon heterophyllus) in the Haagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male Valley carpenter bee twists to look at the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male Valley carpenter bee twists to look at the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male valley carpenter bee, aka "teddy bee," straddles a penstemon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male valley carpenter bee, aka "teddy bee," straddles a penstemon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Native on Native

Native on native. That's when you get when you see a yellow-faced bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) on a penstemon, also known as "beard's tongue." Both the bee and the flower are native to North America. Native Americans reportedly used the...

Yellow-faced bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) crawls inside a penstemon "Evelyn." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Yellow-faced bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) crawls inside a penstemon, "Evelyn." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Just the feet of the yellow-faced bumble bee show. At right, another yellow-faced bumble bee heads off to a flower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Just the feet of the yellow-faced bumble bee show. At right, another yellow-faced bumble bee heads off to a flower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Yellow-faced bumble bee emerging from penstemon blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Yellow-faced bumble bee emerging from penstemon blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This One Rocks

It's not red but it definitely rocks.It rocks because it's drought-tolerant and it rocks when honey bees and bumble bees visit it.And it's pretty. The Penstemon x Mexicali "Red Rocks" is a white-throated cherry-pink flower.One look at it and you know...

Honey Bee

HONEY BEE enters a Penstemon x Mexicali "Red Rocks." It's a member of the snapdragon/foxglove family. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Exit

HONEY BEE exits a Pensemon x Mexicali "Red Socks" as another insect (top left) enters. The plant is drought-tolerant, easy to grow, and attracts insects, especially bees. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Tunneling In

A BUMBLE BEE slips deep inside a Penstemon x Mexicali "Red Rocks." This is the abdomen of a yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Tongue in Cheek

The honey bee nectaring the Penstemon, aka Beardtongue, in Tomales, Calif., didn't seem to mind my presence. Perfect. The amber-colored bee was foraging among the purple two-lipped flowers. The plant derives its name from what appears to be a "tongue"...

Honey Bee

HONEY BEE pauses after nectaring the purple Penstamon and begins to extend her tongue. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Cleaning Her Tongue

HONEY BEE extends her tongue to its full length and cleans it with brushes of her hair on her forelegs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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