A Bee-stiary – Rob Haines Creative Space

photography

This June was the UK’s hottest on record, and I spent much of my spare time crouched in a clover patch with my camera, marvelling at the variety of bees who came to visit.

As a child, I was nervous of all buzzing insects, so to simply be(e) while they went about their buzzness was a wonderful experience.

A large fuzzy bumblebee hanging upside-down from a pink cherry blossom, investigating the centre of the flower. A sweep of pink flowers descends towards the bottom-right of the photo.

A close-up of a white and green clover flower, with a bumblebee hanging off the right-hand side, gathering pollen. The bee has yellow-and-black banding, big black eyes, and bulging pollen baskets on its back legs.

A close-up of a white and green clover flower head, partially obscured by grass stems, with a bumblebee climbing on the left-hand side. The bee has yellow-and-black banding, bulging pollen baskets on its back legs, and the fuzziness of its fur is crisp and clear.

A close-up of a white clover flower head against a green backdrop, with a bumblebee hanging off the left-hand side, gathering pollen. The bee has clear yellow-and-black banding, fuzzy fur, and translucent black wings.

A black-and-yellow bumblebee dangling upside-down from a white clover flower head in the sun.

A black-and-yellow bee gathering pollen from a white and green clover flower head.

A bumblebee with black, gold and white fur, gathering pollen from a white clover flower head.

A bumblebee hanging upside-down off a white clover flower against a green backdrop. There's a grass stem piercing through the clover petals, and the weight of the bee is bending two clover petal down.

A large yellow-and-black bumblebee with a white tail hanging off the left side of a white clover flower, with its face buried in the petals.

A large yellow-and-black bumblebee with a white tail hanging off the right side of a white clover flower. Its front legs are raised to the petals, as if making space for it head in the small flowerlet.

A large yellow-and-black banded bumblebee with translucent wings lined with black, clinging on to the side of a large clover flower.

An immensely fuzzy orange-and-black bumblebee, with highly-detailed wings, with its head buried in the flared petals of a clover flower.

A close-up of a light-brown honeybee drinking from a white clover flower with a long reddish proboscis. It has a thin body with with short brown fur, and it's using its segmented legs to hold onto the surrounding flowers.

A honey-bee with wings shining in the sun, hanging off the right side of a head of white clover flowers, sipping from a flower.

A black and reddish-brown honeybee hanging upside-down from a white clover flower head, against a backdrop of variegated green. Her fur is crisp and fuzzy, and she's drinking from one of the little white flowers.

A black and reddish-brown honeybee in the evening sun, partially shaded by the clover flower head she's feeding from. Her body is covered in fur, and her wings are translucent and catch the light.

A pale brown honeybee clinging to the underside of a white clover flower head in the sun. Her segmented legs are black and reflect the evening light, and she has a small yellow-brown pollen basket at the joint of her rear leg.

A fuzzy honeybee perched on the side of a white clover flower head. Her wings are catching the golden light, really showing off the thin black veins running through the translucent membranes.

A macro photo of a carder bee on a white clover flower. They have a ring of ginger fur around their back, and paler fur further down their body.

A honeybee coming in to rest on a white clover flower. Her wings have stilled, but her back legs are still a blur as she adjusts her balance.

A pale-brown honeybee hangs off the side of a clover flower, pressing her face into a white flower. Her wings are translucent, and the background is a riot of greens and pale pink clover petals.

A round bee with banded yellow and dark-brown along her body, visiting a large clover flower, a starburst of green and white. A large yellow pollen basket can be seen on the bee's rear leg.

An extremely fuzzy tree bumblebee with a shock of golden fur on her back sips from a clover flower, against a backdrop of out-of-focus green clover leaves.

A very fuzzy tree bumblebee hangs from the side of a white clover flower, legs clinging on to the petals while she harvests.

A tree bumblebee, her back covered in golden fur, clings on to a white clover flower while hanging upside-down.

A side-view of a very fuzzy tree bumblebee with golden fur on her back, and paler yellow and white along the rest of her body. She's hanging upside-down from a clover flower with dark-grey legs, and her face is buried in a small white petal.

A honeybee dangling upside-down from a white clover flower, her wings outstretched.

A crisp shot of a honeybee on the side of a white clover flower head, all four wings folded neatly across her back.

A close-up of a honeybee dangling off the side of a white clover flower, her body covered in neat pale-brown fur.

A black and pale brown honeybee feeding from a slightly-wilted clover flower. She has a heavy pollen basket on her rear legs, and her face is pressed into the white petals.

A honeybee with a heavy pollen-basket, feeding from the side of a white clover flower head.

A tree bumblebee with a shock of golden fur, facing the camera from atop a pale purple pincushion flower.

A honeybee feeding from the side of a white clover flower, tucked amongst a variety of green leaves. Her wings are clearly displayed, as is the joint between her abdomen and thorax.

A black and pale-brown honeybee in the evening sunlight, feeding from a white clover flower. Her wings are held out horizontally behind her, as if for balance.

A small black bee - possibly an ashy mining bee? - in flight, approaching a flower. Its wings are a blur, and pinpricks of white light reflect off the edge of each ridge of its abdomen.

A small black bee - possibly an ashy mining bee? - dwarfed by a large white clover flower head. The bee is investigating the flowers half-way down the structure.

A bee with grey fur and yellow pollen streaks on its head, wings ablur, lands on a white clover flower head.

A honey bee with wings in motion, clinging on to the underside of a small white clover flower head, against a backdrop of deep greens.

A crisp side-on photo of a honeybee visiting a small white clover flower head. Her antennas are pressed against the petals, and her proboscis can just about be seen.

A close-up of the same honey bee sipping from a small white and pink clover flower. There is a small pollen basket on her rear leg.

A honey-bee with wings a-blur, balancing on a small white clover flower amidst a forest of rounded clover leaves.

A bee hanging off the side of a white clover flower, its legs yellow and fuzzy, and its wings firmly crossed across its back.

A fuzzy bumblebee hanging off a large cluster of small white marjoram flowers. There are so many more flowers out of focus above and below.

Two honeybees harvest top a pair of clusters of marjoram flowers. The bee to the right is in focus, her body covered in a layer of thin pale-brown fur; the bee to the left is a little further back, and both the bee and her flower are out of focus but can still be clearly seen.

A cluster of marjoram flowers bursting out of a sea of abstract green and brown, with a honey bee perched on top, drinking from a little white flower.

A honeybee perched atop a solitary cluster of marjoram flowers, her proboscis thrust down into a little white flower. Just below, a dense-packed cluster of green buds promises more flowers to come.