My First Ashy Mining Bee

At work, the dog roses are in bloom - and golly gee they smell glorious - and with this little spell of extremely warm humid weather, insects have gone crazy for them. I noticed yesterday that there was a pronounced buzz coming from this particular hedgerow, and on virtually every bloom there was a bee or a beetle.

The most common species were tree bumble workers, the first I've seen this year and a species that may have suffered in the cold spring. Normally the flowering  ceonothus in town would be covered in them.

There were honey bees literally bathing in the nectar, rolling around like a dog in fox poo. These dog roses must be a rich source of the  stuff. There were beetles, some mating, that I think are garden chafers.

But the bestest thing was my first ever ashy mining bee, a stunning black and soft grey solitary bee, a species I was thinking I'd  never see and envied every Instagram post one turned up in.

I'd finally seen one.

All told, it's just an insect, isn't it. Another of the 200 species of bee we have in the UK. But to see a grey bee, that is somehow just a little bit magical!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.06.18