Last week I mentioned the non-native Common St. Johnswort . There are also some natives like this Round-podded St. Johnswort,
Hypericum sphaerocarpum, a short growing plant with a vibrant lemon-lime colored bloom. I’m always happy to see this plant.
No dark spots mark these velvety petals. The mass of long stamens tend to stay bunched together until the time of peak pollen set and then they spread out to create an illusion of softness. Spread stamens seem to signal insects that this flower is ready for visitation. I call this little bee a Calf Pincher, because this type always gets on the backs of my legs when I wear shorts and gives me a little pinchy sting when I crouch down.
Once the flower is fertilized, the stamens tend to close back together. The old petals persist for quite a long time after pollination. Their shriveled remains are often still present when the seed filled pod reaches its full size. The sharply pointed bracts seem to stand as a guard around the developing bloom.
Dangling from beneath a flower is not a normal position for a bee. So what could be holding that bee in place?
I was guessing Ambush Bug, but instead, I found this nice chunky crab spider. Many species of crab spiders ambush prey that has come to feed at a flower.
Small bees are probably the most common prey for these spiders. Later in the summer, it often appears that the majority of flowers have crab spiders stalking their petals. It’s the high numbers of flower visitors that makes it at all safe for small insects to search for nectar and pollen. The spiders can only eat so much each day, so the loss of a couple of insects makes it safe for the majority of visitors.
Last week I mentioned the non-native Common St. Johnswort . There are also some natives like this Round-podded St. Johnswort, Hypericum sphaerocarpum, a short growing plant with a vibrant lemon-lime colored bloom. I’m always happy to see this plant.
No dark spots mark these velvety petals. The mass of long stamens tend to stay bunched together until the time of peak pollen set and then they spread out to create an illusion of softness. Spread stamens seem to signal insects that this flower is ready for visitation. I call this little bee a Calf Pincher, because this type always gets on the backs of my legs when I wear shorts and gives me a little pinchy sting when I crouch down.
Once the flower is fertilized, the stamens tend to close back together. The old petals persist for quite a long time after pollination. Their shriveled remains are often still present when the seed filled pod reaches its full size. The sharply pointed bracts seem to stand as a guard around the developing bloom.
Dangling from beneath a flower is not a normal position for a bee. So what could be holding that bee in place?
I was guessing Ambush Bug, but instead, I found this nice chunky crab spider. Many species of crab spiders ambush prey that has come to feed at a flower.
Small bees are probably the most common prey for these spiders. Later in the summer, it often appears that the majority of flowers have crab spiders stalking their petals. It’s the high numbers of flower visitors that makes it at all safe for small insects to search for nectar and pollen. The spiders can only eat so much each day, so the loss of a couple of insects makes it safe for the majority of visitors.
