What a Wonderful World…

Author Koh Lin ◦

One of my favourite songs growing up is What a Wonderful World, as sung by Louis Armstrong… the words resonating in my working day and through my life…

I see trees of green, red roses too… ok this one is a gorgeous pink

Indeed, I count myself blessed to be the care-taker of a gorgeous accommodation property in Alice Springs known as Vatu Sanctuary. It has provided me with ample oppertunity to open my eyes and experience the life around me.

For those into “Entomology”… Vatu Sanctuary is a paradise for observing the living world around us… Entomology is the study of insects and their relationship to humans, the environment, and other organisms.

My first introduction to this world around us, was to observe the Golden-browed Resin Bee, also known as Megachile aurifrons. It was a special moment, when having seen the resin bee, preparing it’s nesting cells, flying back and forth with loads of pollen, I managed to snap this photo of the Megachile aurifrons with pollen on its face, peering through the “heart shape” nest cell opening.

This was my introduction to being more observant about the natural world around us. Over many months of caring for the grounds, I would quitely observe the coming and goings of this native bee, as it prepared the nest with food, lay the egg and then capped the nest cell.

Of course, I learnt that these bees are opportunistic, in that they look for suitable nesting cells, such as the vacated mud nests of newly hatched Mud Wasp (Eumenes latreilli). I would say that they are great recyclers… why build a home from scratch.

The resin bees were not the only ones to reuse the vacated nest cells of the potter wasp, this tiny Paralastor sp wasp was also a keen tenant. It would create a tiny funnel for the entrance.

In the following photo are two different species Abispa ephippium (Mud-nest Wasp) and Delta latreillei (Orange Potter Wasp) resting on a really hot day in the shade of the lemon tree, protected by the property fence and views of the sparkling pool.

In the garden section of the apply named Pond Apartment, another type of beautiful wasp… the Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp (Radumeris radula) on the lemon blossom with black ants, enjoying the nectar.

and at the Buddha Pond, another Hairy Flower Wasp (Austroscolia nitida)…

Still at the Buddha Pond was this Bush Bee (Austroplebeia australis) that I rescued from the nectar of the lotus flowers, as it was having trouble extracting itself.

Another native bee enjoying the pond, is the Lasioglossum (Homalictus) urbanum in the lotus flower.

Elsewhere around the property and in the garden…

Meanwhile, there were many a rescue from the swimming pool…

Of course there are also the bees, having saved many from the swimming pool, including the Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) and different native bees… Often, once rescued from the clutches of the surface water tension of the pool, they would slowly revive then fly off…