Author Gary Taylor ◦
There’s always stuff going on in BeeTown… I seem to have a lot of Meroglossa rubricata at the moment, at least eight or nine that I’ve counted, and the girl in the first pic has just come home after being away most of the day, no doubt flirting, perhaps even flaunting with the boys down at the local Bottlebrush, and she can sense someone has been in her house…
Second pic, a little potter wasp (pretty sure she’s a Paralastor) that had found what she thought was an empty apartment (while Ruby was off taking her love to town) has just come back to find a big bad bee bum blocking her bloody entrance! She couldn’t believe it!
She leant forward and bit Ruby right on the bum (third pic), “Oi! Get out, that’s my house!”… Ruby just shrugged her off…
Fourth pic, The little Paralastor shaped up to the Meroglossa (bless her sweet little soul, I really like them, they’re good for the garden, all they eat is little caterpillars that ruin your vegies and they’re no harm to your bees in any way other than wanting to share the real estate…) but you don’t mess with Rubes, she’s one of the gutsiest little Aussies you’ve ever met 😃 I’ve seen her take on Euro bees four times her size in weight and send them flying… Sorry little cutie but you’re way out of your league, best you leave before Ruby figures out you’re the one who dumped the caterpillar body in her house you sicko… 😆
Fifth pic Rubes actually came out flicking her feet like a cat that had just stepped in a puddle… ooohhhnnnyyeeaaahhh I just stepped in caterpillar poo…. 😅
Check out the other blogs in this Meroglossa rubricata series:
an awesome “Commando roll” | Ruby… bubbling | Ruby and the wasp | Party at the nest | red is the weakest, the first to fade in low light | A white bubble
See our Fauna section on Bees for more info on our gorgeous Meroglossa rubricata.
Footnote & References
- Blogs by Gary Taylor, Images © Gary Taylor