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recycledrelatives — Hornet On Goldenrod
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Published: 2014-02-23 07:24:27 +0000 UTC; Views: 473; Favourites: 20; Downloads: 0
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Description
UPDATE: This image was featured by Fractalholic here: fav.me/d902k3dThis photo of a bee was taken in the autumn of 2013 in New York State.
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Comments: 8
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Can' quite match the comment, but it's a lovely photo! I love Macro photography and insects are just wildly fascinating. You've captured a beauty!
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It was hilarious to watch me trying to get close enough to this hornet to photograph it! I don't have a macro lens for my camera, so getting really close was my only option for a shot like this. Yes, insects are my favorite subjects to photograph because they are so interesting to view close up. Thanks for the nice comment, Johan! Very kind.
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Bravo.
It takes some dedication (and a certain amount of internal fortitude) to get macros of insects well known for their ability to cause us humans pain.
I recognize your subject - it's a Dolichovespula maculata.
((They're more closely related to YellowJackets than they are to bees.))
D. maculata can be found across North America and being so widely distributed, they're referred to by number of common names:
White-tailed hornet, The Blackjacket, Bull wasp; Around here, they're known as Bald-faced or White-faced hornet.
They make football shaped nests from their saliva & chewed woodpulp.
As this picture shows, the workers feed on nectar from flowers.
Their children's diet is VERY different however and workers go out on predatory raids to catch insects & arthropods.
They will stake out any & all natural attractants in the area- from flowers to garbage cans, animal droppings & cadavers waiting for flies. (They will also take bits of carrion from the corpses too.)
Once caught, the prey is prepped (removing head, wings & legs) the-dude-l-bug.deviantart.com/… then carried back to the nest, where it's chewed into a goo that's then fed to the larva.
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Now that's what I call a great comment! I so much appreciate the time you took to add all of that interesting information about this hornet. (I'm going to change the title from bee to hornet.) Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge! I'm impressed!
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You are quite welcome.
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