Honey bee on Jerusalem artichoke bloom

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

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Honeybee on ‘Sombrero Adobe Orange’ coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Skipper on ‘Sombrero Adobe Orange’ coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Ptilotus Exaltus ‘Joey’

Here’s a shot I got at the rock garden at Green Spring Gardens. Is this not the cutest little plant? It looks like hundreds of little hot pink lipsticks. Each spike is only about 3-4″ tall. It’s a drought tolerant and heat resistant plant from Australia. It’s called Mulla Mulla or Joey Lamb’s Tail (Ptilotus Exaltus ‘Joey’) How’s that for a name?

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

 

Hoverfly on a Shasta daisy

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Hoverfly (also known as a flower fly or syrphid fly) on a Shasta daisy

Here’s a random fact I just came across: there is a flower fly found only in the cloud forests of Costa Rica that is named for Bill Gates (Bill Gates’ flower fly). Another one is named after Gates’ associate Paul Allen (Paul Allen’s flower fly). The flies were named such in recognition of their “great contributions to the science of Dipterology” (From the order Diptera, which includes insects that use just two wings to fly)

So now you know, too. You’re welcome. 😁

But wait! There’s more! Curiosity took me to a site that answered my burning question—how long do hoverflies live? A lot shorter life than I imagined! Here’s the answer:

Their live span is similar to other flies. They can live anywhere between 15 to 30 days and it all depends on the climate and temperature they are in.

Bell Agapanthus

Bell Agapanthus (Aganpanthus campanulatus)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Buffet line: Skippers on Purple coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.