Stingers!

Bees and flying insect, even ants luv our hydrangea paniculata phantom blooms!  They are oodles of blooms on two separate plants and they're always covered with insects

Paper Wasp -

Tree Wasp (maybe?) -

Tachinid fly -

Black-faced Hornet - 

Black-faced Hornet - 

Great Black Wasp (maybe?) -

These are just some of the examples of the visiting critters!

Do You Mind If We Dance With Your Dates?!

I watched these 2 Black Wasp fight? Dance? Mate? Cuddle? The other day while eating lunch on the deck.  I'm not sure but believe these dudes are the ones seen flying into the drain holes on the deck furniture.  Sure hope someone doesn't sit on one, not sure what the outcome will bee...

Close Closer Closest

I believe this is some sort of wasp.

Dude was perched on our bay window this afternoon.  With the glass between us I took the opportunity to get up close and personal.

North American Wasp Paper Nest

Check out this basketball sized North American Hornets nest Emilie and I came across, YIKES!

 



 

This abode is hanging over the driveway entrance to the park!  If you were ~8 or 9 feet tall you'd bump into it with you head.  Perhaps, this was a "first build" for the little wasp engineer who designed it.  I don't believe size and weight, as the casa grew, was taken into consideration otherwise they would have chosen a larger branch.

 

 

I pity the fool that unknowingly disturbs these dudes.  With any luck it will be one of the inconsiderate people that visit the park and treat it as if it was there very own.

The "Greats"...

 

This time of the year we have all kinds of flowers blooming and it's fantastic!  Of course with all these flower there are plenty of insects; flying one, crawling one, jumping ones, etc.

 

Here is a picture of a Great Globe Thistle, otherwise known as Echinops sphaerocephalus, that is playing host to the Great Black Wasp, otherwise known as Sphex pensylvanicus.

 

I love the black on purple colors.  Ah, really enjoy walking around the yard and watching all these critters enjoying all our labor of love!