eebee's Favorites

When I first noticed this snakefly clinging to one of last season's dried grass stems, I thought perhaps it was a male because I couldn't see any ovipositor. But then, when I looked at my initial photos more closely, the abdomen shape didn't look right for a male and I wondered if perhaps the reason I couldn't see the ovipositor was because it was currently in use. Sure enough, further photos confirmed that she was in the process of inserting eggs.

Looking for ID for the leafminer (I think?) that made the circular blotch.

Obs for the host plant is here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/98343846

Obs for the other leafminer is here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/98343849

This observation is for the bee that is alone in the first two photos and is on the left in the last photo. It's in the Anthophora aggregation: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/eebee/47186-anthophora-nest-aggregation-in-my-yard

Remind me never to get on the wrong side of those mandibles.

These tiny creatures were on a disabled bee, where the head meets the thorax. See the last photo in this obs for a view including more of the bee, and separate obs for the bee here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/71401890

I finally got good pics of more of the body of a female in the Anthophora aggregation in my yard! The bee that is the object of this observation is alone in most of the photos, but in the last three photos, she is the one partially in shadow. The separate obs for the male in full sun is here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/71346892

A. pacifica has been one ID in the running for these bees based on how the males look (thanks @trevorsless and @johnascher), but the A. pacifica females on BugGuide look really different, much darker, to me: https://bugguide.net/node/view/384793

Thoughts, anybody?

I was astonished to see this bee flying so early in the year! It was 43 degrees F outside according to my weather app. This was on a south-facing hill in bright sun, though, so the local temp might have been slightly higher. I was also surprised to see what looks like an Anthophora over on this side of the mountains; it looks like there are just a few other records in King County. I'm very curious about whether I'm right on the initial ID. The plant it’s on is a cultivated Rhododendron: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/69327006. It was skittish when I approached, and I took this from >6 ft away with a 300mm lens rather than with a 100mm macro.

Small, maybe about 1/4" long. I went through the male Megachile guide on Discover Life but a lot of species were left after I narrowed down based on the characteristics I could figure out. Looks a lot like this Megachile rotundata on BugGuide: https://bugguide.net/node/view/1871938/bgimage

This observation is for the prey, which looks pretty unmistakably like a male Agapostemon. I've also seen male Agapostemon flying at this site.

The last pic is an hour after the first series and the prey seems to have been largely consumed.