Sunday, January 29, 2012

Bumble Bee Macro

bumble bee macroIf you ever get close enough to a bee you might notice that they look kind of fuzzy. Their bodies are covered with many small hairs. These are actually called setae. The setae are very important to bees. They are like little sensors that aid the bee in things like determining wind speed. The setae are also important for pollination of plants. When the bee is in a flower feeding on nectar or collecting pollen to take back to the hive pollen often gets trapped on the setae. At the next flower it might come free as the bee wiggles in to take a drink and the plant gets pollinated.

11 comments:

mhie said...

superb;visiting from Macro monday:http://www.travelentz.com/2012/01/food-photographyspaghetti.html

Teresa said...

I just love your science lessons! Your photography is pretty amazing too.

Jama said...

I always enjoy your macro shot, so crisp and clear!

Wendy said...

Amazing photo...and info to boot!

Anna said...

Great capture of this bee!
I really love it.
Greetings from Holland,
Anna :-))

Herding Cats said...

Stunning bee capture.

Bee Girl said...

Oh wow! This is absolutely gorgeous!

Tatjana Parkacheva said...

Excellent macro photography.

Regards and best wishes

Ida said...

Awesome Macro of the Bee - It does look "fuzzy" and it was interesting reading about the setae.

Kala said...

Excellent colors, details, and light!

Happy MM

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Excellent macro shot... really well done!