Pollinator Posts by May Chen

Yike, there’s a male Pacific Coast Tick, Dermacentor occidentalis (family Ixodidae) questing on the tip of a grass blade.  And I thought I am safe from ticks in a botanic garden! Ticks pick a place

It’s time to visit the Regional Parks Botanic Garden again. The large stand of Ruby Chalice Clarkia, Clarkia rubicunda is in peak bloom.  Why do these three flowers from the same plant look so different?

This scene puzzles me.  First, although this flowerhead of Pacific Aster, Symphyotrichum chilense is relatively fresh, its florets are strangely devoid of pollen.  Then the little bee – it superficially resembles a Tripartite Sweat Bee, but

In the far corner of Stefanie’s backyard, a beetle-like insect is walking on a leaf of Bee Plant, Scrophularia californica.  It is actually a Stink Bug nymph.  The third instar nymph of the Southern Green

Farewell-to-Spring, Clarkia amoena is putting up a show in Stefanie’s front garden.  Few native plants can match the size and vibrancy of its blooms. Farewell To Spring A young Jumping Spider, Phidippus sp. (family Salticidae)

When I arrive at Stefanie’s garden in San Leandro this morning, the place is aflutter with dozens of Acmon Blue butterflies.   Acmon Blue, Icaricia acmon (family Lycaenidae) is found along the west coast of North America, from

Many homes along Bayview Drive have gardens that spill onto the salt marsh beyond their property lines, much to the delight of folks who walk this trail.  I stop at a particular garden that is

I next make the short drive to Elsie Roemer Bird Sanctuary along Alameda Beach.   I walk the narrow trail that runs south-eastward from the Bird Sanctuary, winding its way through salt march vegetation on

Since it is cool and cloudy this morning, I decide to make a quick run to Naomi’s sidewalk garden in Alameda.  Maybe the male Summer Longhorn Bees, Melissodes sp. (family Apidae) are still sleeping in

It’s very low tide at 10:30 am at Crab Cove.  I sit on the beach to enjoy the breezes and to watch a child explore the exposed mud flat.   A large brown hover fly

It’s a clear, sunny morning at Crab Cove.  At the end of McKay Ave, the Sneezeweed, Heleniun puberulum near the curb has started to bloom.   A male Fine Striped Sweat Bee, Agapostemon subtilior (family

This must be a good year for the Hairy Gumweed, Grindelia hirsutula (family Asteraceae).  The plants are blooming in profusion along Sanborn Ave., especially where the road loops around near the  scenic lookout point.  

It is time to revisit Joaquin Miller Park in the Oakland hills.   It is still early and cool in the morning, and not many insects are flying.  The Soft-winged Flower Beetles, Listrus sp. (family

I arrive at Crab Cove late this morning, almost noon. A female Fine Striped Sweat Bee, Agapostemon subtilior (family Halictidae) is taking nectar from an inflorescence of St. Catherine’s Lace, Eriogonum giganteum.  Note that the

Seeking relief from the afternoon heat, I take my walk in the cool shade of Leona Canyon Regional Open Space Preserve in the Oakland hills.   A Metallic Sweat Bee, Lasioglossum (Dialictus) sp. (family Halictidae)

Hey, something’s happening on that Coffeeberry leaf!  A Western Lynx Spider, Oxyopes scalaris (family Oxyopidae) has captured a black winged insect.  From this side view, you can see the bizarre profile of the spider and two of

Taking a walk at Shoreline Park in Bay Farm this windy afternoon, I don’t expect to take any pictures.   The only insects out foraging seem to be a few hardy bumble bees who can

I stop by a large shrub of Coffeeberry, Frangula californica that is in bloom.  A Honey Bee, Apis mellifera (family Apidae) is foraging on a cluster of Coffeeberry flowers.   A couple of fruits are

On this fine, sunny morning I go for my walk on the West Ridge Trail in the Redwood Regional Park starting from the Waterloo Staging Area. A small, dark butterfly lands on the tangle of

Armed with a fully charged cell phone camera, I return to Alameda.  First, a quick stop at the Crab Cove visitor center to check on the mating bumble bees.  They are no longer there –

I travel the short distance from Naomi’s native sidewalk garden on Lincoln Ave. to Crab Cove.  First I check the plantings at the end of McKay Ave. The Coyote Mint, Monardella villosa is fading but

I arrive at Naomi’s native plantings on the Lincoln Ave. sidewalk strip in Alameda a little before 9 am, thinking that I would find some male Summer Longhorn Bees still sleeping.   No such luck!

When I look up from photographing insects I was amazed to see large numbers of insects swarming over the lawn area near the children’s playground.  They don’t show up in this photo at all.  The

Seeking shade and coolness on a day forecast to be hot, I take my morning walk at the Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park in the Oakland hills today.   Most of the California Blackberry, Rubus ursinus