Enough of Billy Waggledagger as we used to call him at school. How many bees?
Well only 17, so probably not bees as in the insects.
These...
...as in Bee Orchids. That's far more than we've found so far but they are in flower and that makes life a lot easier. Still tricky when they are secreted amongst taller vegetation.Most had only one flower but this one has three and another bud looks like it gonan open during the next bout of summer sunshine.
Cute wee things I really like 'em.
And you get a cunning pollination strategy the 'bee' really does imitate a bee - even smells like one - to attract passing male bees. Trouble is we don't have that species here in the UK so how does it reproduce? Well it does a bit of self pollination and relies on some other dumb insects that don't kmow they're not bees. If you're thinking I just regurgitated that info straight off Springwatch I have to tell you I already knew it.
Little belters aren't they. One of my favourites; never tire of looking at them.
Support for the Bee Orchids came in the form of a lone Orange Hawkweed, its alternative name of Fox and Cubs is much more fitting. Another one of my favourites.
Cute wee things I really like 'em.And you get a cunning pollination strategy the 'bee' really does imitate a bee - even smells like one - to attract passing male bees. Trouble is we don't have that species here in the UK so how does it reproduce? Well it does a bit of self pollination and relies on some other dumb insects that don't kmow they're not bees. If you're thinking I just regurgitated that info straight off Springwatch I have to tell you I already knew it.
Little belters aren't they. One of my favourites; never tire of looking at them.Support for the Bee Orchids came in the form of a lone Orange Hawkweed, its alternative name of Fox and Cubs is much more fitting. Another one of my favourites.Where to next? Weekend safari to distant hills I think.
In the meantime it's orchid time - let us know what orchids are about your outback.
2 comments:
Orchids - well I may have found a Frarant Orchid on my patch. (see thursdays post) I'll see when it blooms!
Wow, I have never seen anything like that bee orchid. Thanks for sharing! It's been a good week or two since I've done a serious flower hunt, so I definitely plan to get back out there and see what new treasures are blooming locally.
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