A Hornet Spider and Bees

[lesno1]

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[DanK]

Les,

Good shots.

The last two are hoverflies, not bees. Note the flat antennae and the shape of the eyes. They also have only two wings, but it is often hard to see all 4 on bugs that aren't flies.

The first two appear to be some sort of wasp or hornet, not bees. However, at least on this side of the pond, there are species of bee that share some characteristics of wasps--e.g., some parasitic bees, like wasps, have legs that aren't suited to collecting pollen. Still, I'd bet that these aren't bees. Geoff may have a better ID

Dan

[lesno1]

Thanks Dan yes the first two are hornets wasnt sure about the hovers

[DanK]

The eye shape is usually a give-away, but the fail-safe is the flat, paddle-shaped antennae. Compare them to the antennae of the hornets in the top photos.

[Geoff F]

Your hoverflies are Eristalis tenax (a bee mimic) and Syrphus torvus or vitripennis (difficult to separate them).

Hornets seem to have had a good year. At one site which I regularly visit, one colony has created a late nest which is active now. If the weather remains good and there is sufficient food they might just get away with it.

[lesno1]

Thanks Geoff those hornets are like the brutes on the insect world they just look scary

[Geoff F]

Hornets have great self confidence and do whatever they want, going wherever they need to go without worry of being attacked. But fortunately that air of confidence means you really have to upset them before they can be bothered to attack you. Even if you get close to a nest they will simply send out a few guards to fly around your head as a warning; unlike the common wasps who sting first and ask questions later.

[lesno1]

I didnt know that how interesting

[Shadowman]

Nice series.

[chaman]

Nice exposure and colors but these all seem soft to me.

[LisaChapman88]

*Shudder*
Yikes! Hopefully you are zoomed in and not very close lol. Some great shots!

[lesno1]

Thanks Lisa Probably about four to six inches away

[DanK]

Thanks Lisa Probably about four to six inches away

So presumably a substantial crop? That might account for some softness.

[Geoff F]

Were they auto or manual focus? With some of them the background is sharp but parts of the intended subjects are slightly out of focus.

[lesno1]

So presumably a substantial crop? That might account for some softness.

No only light crops mainly to remove bits of the background and very light sharpening

[lesno1]

Were they auto or manual focus? With some of them the background is sharp but parts of the intended subjects are slightly out of focus.

Hi Geoff they were All auto focus im also using back button focusing

[billtils]

Nice series and very informative discussion from Geoff et al. It's clear why the hoverfly is described as a bee mimic, but I was more familiar with it being called a drone hoverfly, which is not such an obvious description.

Re your focus method - back button is simply the method used to trigger the auto focus and it would help to know how the focus itself was set, for example was it single point, or group (4 or 5 points clustered around the centre point), or what?

[lesno1]

Nice series and very informative discussion from Geoff et al. It's clear why the hoverfly is described as a bee mimic, but I was more familiar with it being called a drone hoverfly, which is not such an obvious description.

Re your focus method - back button is simply the method used to trigger the auto focus and it would help to know how the focus itself was set, for example was it single point, or group (4 or 5 points clustered around the centre point), or what?

Hi Bill its single point focus i like the bbf as its much faster .The hornet and spider were static but the hovers were very busy

[billtils]

Hi Bill its single point focus i like the bbf as its much faster .The hornet and spider were static but the hovers were very busy

Me too, on both techniques.

[chaman]

Hi Bill its single point focus i like the bbf as its much faster .The hornet and spider were static but the hovers were very busy

You could consider a higher SS next time. Subjects like insects and also birds move a lot and could explain the softness in your images.