Posts Tagged: Robbin Thorp
Bumble Bee Mellowing Out on the Mallow
Nice to see you! That's how we greeted our very last bumble bee of 2016. The yellow-faced bumble...
It looks like...it is! A yellow-faced bumble bee,Bombus vosnesenski, seeking nectar from a mallow blossom at the Natural Bridges State Park, Santa Cruz. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, sipping nectar on mallow on Nov. 14 in Natural Bridges State Park, Santa Cruz. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Side view of yellow-faced bumble bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Carpenter Bee: Beneficial Insect or Pest?
Let's face it--some folks are not fond of carpenter bees. Honey bees, yes! Bumble bees, yes!...
A female mountain carpenter bee, Xylocopa tabaniformis orpifex, pierces the corolla of salvia to rob the nectar. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male mountain carpenter bee, Xylocopa tabaniformis orpifex, heads for bulbine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A familiar sight: a female Valley carpenter bee, covered with pollen and nectaring on a passion flower. The female is solid black, while the male of this species is a green-eyed blond. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male Valley carpenter bee, Xyclopa varipuncta, pierces the corolla of a foothill Penstemon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Female carpenter bees, Xyclopa variuncta, often drill holes in limbs of dead trees to build their nests. This find, from Davis naturalist/photographer Allan Jones, shows a male wintering inside one of the holes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Robbin Thorp: Chasing Franklin's Bumble Bee
It may be extinct, but don't say the "E" word to Robbin Thorp. Thorp, a noted bumble bee expert,...
Robbin Thorp and his computer screen showing his image of Franklin's bumble bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp next to an almond tree on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Landmark Book Addresses California Bees, Blooms
If you're looking for a holiday gift for family and friends--or maybe yourself--think bees and...
This is a native bumble bee, Bombus californicus, on blanketflower (Gaillardia). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Often mistakenly "identified" as a "golden bumble bee," this is the male Valley carpenter bee, Xylocopa varipuncta, on flowering milkweed. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
How Climate Change Affects Bees
Have you ever wondered how climate change affects bees? Honey bees and native bees? You can find...
This ceramic-mosaic sculpture of a worker bee, by self-described "rock artist" Donna Billick of Davis, anchors the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)