• Question: What is the best part of spending your days watching pollinators?

    Asked by anon-218619 to johnpaterson on 13 Jun 2019. This question was also asked by anon-218615.
    • Photo: John Paterson

      John Paterson answered on 13 Jun 2019: last edited 13 Jun 2019 12:22 pm

      I enjoy seeing the different species come out at different times of the year. For example, a few weeks ago my flowers were being visited by loads of tree bumblebees (latin name Bombus hypnorum) because they nest very early. But now I’m not really seeing them and instead have lots of buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) visiting them. I saw my first Mallota hoverfly yesterday, a species that mimics honeybees. It makes me feel like I’m understanding the seasonal timings of some of the insects.

      You also see some cool things that you just wouldn’t get to see in the office. A few weeks ago I saw a massive honeybee swarm and just last week I found a birds nest inside a hollow gate post near the garden I use, where a coal tit had two chicks.

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