Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Bee

"In the city of Calgary the air quality health index was off the charts through the overnight hours Tuesday (25 August 2015), peaking at 19 on a scale where 10 is considered "high." The smoke is being blown here from the northwestern United States. It affected the visibility the whole day, so there was no sign of the distant mountains and even the hills and fields closest to us. Most unpleasant, and I don't know how people who live much closer to the wildfires are managing! So many Firefighters bravely battling the flames down in this whole area, as well as all those fighting the fires in British Columbia! Added on 27 August - apparently, a spider had climbed inside the equipment used to track air quality and this had given the inaccurate ratings! Air quality was really bad, though. Yesterday morning, 25 August, 10 of us arrived at a friend's house, ready to go north of Calgary to near Sundre, for a few hours of botanizing, This was the second visit to Judy Osborne's for a few of us, me included. The previous trip was on 30 June 2015. By now, of course, a lot of the wildflowers are finished, but I found enough other things to photograph, including a distant, beautiful Red-tailed Hawk, plus a few of the plants in my friends' garden at the beginning and end of the day. When we were looking at their enormous vegetable garden late afternoon, I noticed this small Chives flower. I moved so that the vibrant colour of Chard (?) filled the background - and then a little bee flew in : ) Thanks to Art (Leapfrog) for the ID: Red Belted Bumble Bee / Bombus rufocinctus. Thanks so much, Judy, for having us out on your beautiful property again. It was a most enjoyable day, despite the dreadful, smoke-filled air. We look forward to being out there again next year! Many thanks, too, to Barry, who drove a few of us out there and back to Calgary. A long, long drive and it was much appreciated!

This is a macro shot of Baby's breath flowers, which are quite tiny. Many of you will know this plant, as it is commonly used in flower arrangements. Once it is growing in the wild, it spreads and takes over the native plants. One area in Calgary where this has happened is the Erlton/Roxborough Natural Area, and this destruction probably started as a result of someone throwing away a flower arrangement from the cemetery that joins on to the Natural Area, tossing it over the fence.

Another photo of one of my favourite garden flowers - wish I had some in my own garden : ). This one was growing at the Reader Rock Garden.

I didn't notice the second insect until I had the image on my computer : ). Sowthistles seem to be everywhere, adding lots of colour. However, they are an introduced species from Eurasia.

Echinacea - one of my favourite garden flowers! I guess I didn't notice the long legs in front of the bee when I was actually taking the photo.

I'm looking forward to seeing what photos my daughter (who lives in Vancouver but is in Calgary for a week at the moment) eventually posts to flickr or sends me in a regular e-mail. We spent a couple of hours together yesterday morning wandering round the Stampede Grounds, soaking up the annual Calgary Stampede atmosphere. This is just a silly photo, of one of the "bumble bees" that are part of one of the Midway (amusement park) rides. For sure, I can't stay away from nature for long, LOL! Actually, I was also curious to see how sharp this image would be in original size - a stationary object taken in full sunlight, unlike most of my usual subjects.

I believe this is a fly which mimics a bee. Perhaps someone could correct me if I am wrong : ). This insect was happily buzzing at Erlton/Roxborough Natural Area this morning. Here, it has landed on a closed Goat's-beard flower. Later: thanks for the correction, Doug! I heard G say something about "something" being a fly not a bee. Guess I thought he meant THIS insect : )

This plant originated in Eurasia and was introduced all across Canada. Though it is a valuable nectar source for honey bees, it has become a troublesome and noxious weed in Alberta.

Some kind of bee on a tall Scabius flower at the Reader Rock Garden.

This little bee was busily hovering inside a large, white Peony in the garden at the Calgary Zoo.