Flies (Diptera spp.) are an eclectic group of pollinators with many species that mimic bees. The bee fly or humblefly is a perfect example of a batesian mimic, a harmless fly mimicking a potentially harmful bee as a deterrent to predation. This fuzzy little fly, reminiscent of a bumble bee, has a stout body, very long legs and a very long proboscis that allow … Continue reading A Batesian Mimic, The Bee Fly
Growing in the Hudson Highland wetlands, the buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) is at home alongside tussock grasses with roots growing in spongy sphagnum moss. It thrives in full to partial sun alongside high bush blueberry and sweet azalea. Black gum, red maple and mountain laurel find their niche on the slightly drier edges before the forest transitions into a drier oak forest. This edge habitat … Continue reading Buttonbush a Midsummer Favorite
Wave Hill in the Bronx is a 28 acre garden, an oasis that transports visitors to another world. The vista from the Pergola Overlook commands the attention of the Palisades, sheer cliffs that rise from the western shore of the Hudson River. The gardens form a pollinator haven amid an urban landscape. There is mounting evidence that planting flower patches in urban gardens and green … Continue reading Pollinator Haven at Wave Hill
The blue orchard bee (Osmia lignaria) is a fast efficient native pollinator of early spring flowers. In the apple orchard 250 to 300 of these powerhouse pollinators can do the equivalent work of 90,000 (two hives) honey bees. Part of this success is due to their ability to visit more flowers per minute and to transfer pollen more effectively. It is also helpful that some … Continue reading Osmia: Powerhouse Pollinators
Ladies’ tabacco, Plantain-leaved everlasting, Plantain-leaved pussytoes, Pussytoes are common names for Antennaria plantaginifolia, an inconspicuous little plant in the Aster family. It thrives in full sun and is perfectly suited for poor dry rocky soils. Paddle shaped leaves are reminiscent of the common plantain (Plantago major) except they are hairy leaves with three to five parallel veins. The flower itself stands no higher than 6” … Continue reading Pussytoes: An Inconspicuous Little Plant
The European Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) arrived in the Americas aboard European ships around 1622. In a way this was a homecoming, America had regained her long lost honey bees. It has always been assumed that honey bees are not native to North America until a recent discovery found a single fossil of a native North American honey bee in the Stewart Valley basin in … Continue reading Native North American Honey Bees?
On a recent August morning, Native Beeology founder, Tim Stanley and the YMCA Kingston Farm Project staff and interns gathered together to explore the urban garden and see what bees were busy at work pollinating the plants in blossom. The mission of the Kingston YMCA is to educate and empower young people and their families in the City of Kingston by directly engaging them in … Continue reading A Garden of Specialists
Suzanne, Elizabeth and Wilhelmina burst out of the manor house into the wide open spaces of Stony Kill Farm. The three sisters ran down the farm lane with intentions to play hide and seek in the barn but suddenly they spot an yellow tiger swallowtail butterfly fluttering in the hayfields. They look at each other and in silent accord jump with leap and bounds through … Continue reading The Pollinators of Stony Kill Farm
The common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) found growing in abandoned farm fields and along roadside edges is quickly dismissed as a “weed”. The milkweed is so much more than an unwanted plant growing in unwanted places. This underrated native herbaceous perennial produces beautiful sweet smelling flowers that makes it a pollinator favorite and it is also the host plant of the Monarch butterfly caterpillar. The common … Continue reading The Amazing Milkweed
