Melissodes apicata, m, back, velum, Middlesex CO, MA_2015-12-10-11.11

Description:

If all the Pickerelweed in the world would disappear...this species would too. This is Melissodes apicata; a male, as you can see form its longgggg antennae and its young can only be fed pickerelweed pollen. The males actually don't do anything of substance other than pass along their molecular material, but mom bee has little hooks on the hairs on the tip of her toungue that she uses to hook out Pickerelweed pollen. You don't get to learn these things unless someone looks Pilgrim. Claire Mudd took this shot. The specimen came from a refuge in Massachusetts, but I forget which one! ~~~~~~~~~~{{{{{{0}}}}}}~~~~~~~~~~ All photographs are public domain, feel free to download and use as you wish. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200 Beauty is truth, truth beauty - that is all Ye know on earth and all ye need to know " Ode on a Grecian Urn" John Keats You can also follow us on Instagram - account = USGSBIML Want some Useful Links to the Techniques We Use? Well now here you go Citizen: Free Field Guide to Bee Genera of Marylandhttp://bio2.elmira.edu/fieldbio/beesofmarylandbookversion1.pdf Basic USGSBIML set up: www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-_yvIsucOY USGSBIML Photoshopping Technique: Note that we now have added using the burn tool at 50% opacity set to shadows to clean up the halos that bleed into the black background from "hot" color sections of the picture. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdmx_8zqvN4 Bees of Maryland Organized by Taxa with information on each Genus www.flickr.com/photos/usgsbiml/collections PDF of Basic USGSBIML Photography Set Up: ftp://ftpext.usgs.gov/pub/er/md/laurel/Droege/How%20to%20Take%20MacroPhotographs%20of%20Insects%20BIML%20Lab2.pdf Google Hangout Demonstration of Techniques: plus.google.com/events/c5569losvskrv2nu606ltof8odo or www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c15neFttoU Excellent Technical Form on Stacking: www.photomacrography.net/ Contact information: Sam Droege sdroege@usgs.gov 301 497 5840