In downtown Charleston, SC on the last day of November many of the gardens had blooming roses despite the recent overnight freezing temps.
One lone bee was industriously working this large blossom.
There are several more buds in waiting to occupy the bee if they and he survive this week’s chill.
Lantana bloom all summer long but are really noticeable in the fall when a lot of the annuals in flower beds have passed their prime.
In the first two images the bee’s eye has rather a weird glow, perhaps part reflection from the flowers.
The bee was fully investigating the flowers.
He was quite methodical, going back and forth, completely covering the flower head and giving me a variety of body angles.
I was happy to see this aged and fallen Rose of Sharon left in place on a lawn at Rose Hill Plantation. While not thriving, it provided a nice burst of color when the actual roses in the formal gardens on the property had gone dormant.
Many blooms were managing just fine and were a very intense color.
A few bees buzzed around in the late morning heat, 90 plus degrees F (32 Degrees C).
This one got stuck down in the flower’s center then crawled his way up a petal, curling it as he went, to get out. I wondered if he was carrying too much pollen to lift off, but he eventually made it.
It was a lazy summer afternoon and a few rather large bees buzzed around a group of Trumpet Vine trumpets. They enter the blossoms head first…
… then awkwardly back out.
Lift off to the next flower.
This one appeared to pause for a moment on the flower ruffle.
Pollen sacks loaded but they kept working, this time with a sideways maneuver into the blossom.
The day had warmed up from 50 F (10 C) to the high 70s (21 C) and the bees came out to inspect the wild flowers around the old rice ponds.
These asters were a big draw and this patch had multiple bees working the blossoms.
Here’s a wider view of the aster patch well lit by the mid-day sun.
This bee was a diligent worker, checking every single one of the florets on this branch.
He worked in a circular motion, spiraling towards the tip of the branch.
Up, over and around again.
I lost focus when he got to the very end and the branch started to wobble.
The bees were very busy in the sunflower fields.
These flowers need little dressing up, but a bee adds a nice visual touch.
This moth looks a little worse for the wear but found a great spot to gather some sustenance. The bee was working his way around the sunflower’s perimeter.
Then zip, the bee made a bee line to the next flower with some of that hard gained pollen dropping behind him. The moth didn’t miss a beat and continued his methodical probing.
Click on images for larger view.
