National Pollinator Week

For National Pollinator Week, I shared a pollinator photo, accompanied with a pollinator fact, on social media each day. In case you're not on Instagram or Twitter, here are my photos with their fact. I hope you learn something new!

Day 1

Day 1 of #NationalPollinatorWeek! First up, this cute little mining bee foraging on Oregon sunshine. As their name suggests, they dig small underground tunnels for their nests.

---

Day 2

#NationalPollinatorWeek Day 2: male fuzzy-horned bumble #bee on oxeye daisy. Males cannot sting: the stinger is a modified egg-laying device, which males do not have. True for all male stinging #insects. Some males have defensive spikes instead.

---

Day 3

Day 3 of #NationalPollinatorWeek goes to my new study species: the Puget blue #butterfly. When it's a caterpillar, the Puget blue butterfly is tended by ants. In return, the ants receive a sugary snack (see my Instagram post).

---

Day 4

Day 4 of #NationalPollinatorWeek: an anise swallowtail #butterfly taking flight over a patch of onion flowers. The anise swallowtail gets its name from its penchant for laying eggs on an introduced plant, sweet fennel (aka anise).

---

Day 5

#NationalPollinatorWeek Day 5 goes to the #flies! Although they're often forgotten, flies (like this flower fly), are important #pollinators for plant diversity in the wild and production in agriculture!

---

Day 6

Day 6 of #NationalPollinatorWeek! Lupine is complicated to #pollinate. This yellow-faced bumble #bee steps on the outer petals to reveal the inner keel (where the #pollen is), hugs the keel, and buzzes to free that beautiful orange pollen.

---

Day 7

Last day of #NationalPollinatorWeek, going back to my roots: honey #bees. Honey bees are important for crop #pollination, but they are NOT the only #pollinator. They aren't even native to the United States! Kelsey Graham (my Starks Lab sister) on native bees here.