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| Keywords: zerene stacker zerenestacker stackshot geological survey geologicalsurvey united states geological survey unitedstatesgeologicalsurvey department of the interior departmentoftheinterior droege biml bee inventory and monitoring laboratory beeinventoryandmonitoringlaboratory bug bugs canon close-up closeup macro insect patuxent wildlife research center patuxentwildliferesearchcenter pwrc usgs dofstacking stacking canon mpe65 canonmpe65 taxonomy:genus=melissodes animals animal bee bees apoidea hymenoptera pollinator nativebee virginia radford munitions plant radfordmunitionsplant pulaski county pulaskicounty black background photo border surreal monochrome Here is a Melissodes from Pulaski County, Virginia collected at the Radford Munitions Plant which is kept in high quality grasslands because they are good stewards. I would characterize the region as sitting at the tail end of the Shenandoah Valley in an area that in the long view had been open / grassland prairie something like this during Indian times and maybe even mastodon times. Now it gets interesting (for me at least). This Melissodes (and another specimen collected in a different year) are very similar to M. bimaculata in terms of immediate looks. But, they are not and they seem to match no other Melissodes in the East. Boring Bee Head details now follow: In comparison they look almost exactly like M. bimaculata except for the following: Size - clearly smaller, but larger than the M. druriella I have on hand. Abdomen - no white patches on t2-6. Propodeum - White hairs running from the base of the hind wings on the propodeum in the "triangle" area...these are all black in M. bimaculata T1 - Most of the dorsal hairs are off-white, hairs on anterior face are black...everything is black on T1 in M. bimaculata Hind Tibia - Hair entirely light colored and with a slight amber tinge...in M. bimaculata the inside edge is lined with black hairs Wings - Noticeably less brown, but still slightly smoky. What is it...I have pinged the experts and no one is sure. To the DNA with this one. ~~~~~~~~~~{{{{{{0}}}}}}~~~~~~~~~~ All photographs are public domain, feel free to download and use as you wish. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200 Beauty is truth, truth beauty - that is all Ye know on earth and all ye need to know " Ode on a Grecian Urn" John Keats You can also follow us on Instagram - account = USGSBIML Want some Useful Links to the Techniques We Use? Well now here you go Citizen: Art Photo Book: Bees: An Up-Close Look at Pollinators Around the World www.qbookshop.com/products/216627/9780760347386/Bees.html... Basic USGSBIML set up: www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-_yvIsucOY USGSBIML Photoshopping Technique: Note that we now have added using the burn tool at 50% opacity set to shadows to clean up the halos that bleed into the black background from "hot" color sections of the picture. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdmx_8zqvN4 PDF of Basic USGSBIML Photography Set Up: ftp://ftpext.usgs.gov/pub/er/md/laurel/Droege/How%20to%20Take%20MacroPhotographs%20of%20Insects%20BIML%20Lab2.pdf Google Hangout Demonstration of Techniques: plus.google.com/events/c5569losvskrv2nu606ltof8odo or www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c15neFttoU Excellent Technical Form on Stacking: www.photomacrography.net/ Contact information: Sam Droege sdroege@usgs.gov 301 497 5840 Here is a Melissodes from Pulaski County, Virginia collected at the Radford Munitions Plant which is kept in high quality grasslands because they are good stewards. I would characterize the region as sitting at the tail end of the Shenandoah Valley in an area that in the long view had been open / grassland prairie something like this during Indian times and maybe even mastodon times. Now it gets interesting (for me at least). This Melissodes (and another specimen collected in a different year) are very similar to M. bimaculata in terms of immediate looks. But, they are not and they seem to match no other Melissodes in the East. Boring Bee Head details now follow: In comparison they look almost exactly like M. bimaculata except for the following: Size - clearly smaller, but larger than the M. druriella I have on hand. Abdomen - no white patches on t2-6. Propodeum - White hairs running from the base of the hind wings on the propodeum in the "triangle" area...these are all black in M. bimaculata T1 - Most of the dorsal hairs are off-white, hairs on anterior face are black...everything is black on T1 in M. bimaculata Hind Tibia - Hair entirely light colored and with a slight amber tinge...in M. bimaculata the inside edge is lined with black hairs Wings - Noticeably less brown, but still slightly smoky. What is it...I have pinged the experts and no one is sure. To the DNA with this one. ~~~~~~~~~~{{{{{{0}}}}}}~~~~~~~~~~ All photographs are public domain, feel free to download and use as you wish. Photography Information: Canon Mark II 5D, Zerene Stacker, Stackshot Sled, 65mm Canon MP-E 1-5X macro lens, Twin Macro Flash in Styrofoam Cooler, F5.0, ISO 100, Shutter Speed 200 Beauty is truth, truth beauty - that is all Ye know on earth and all ye need to know " Ode on a Grecian Urn" John Keats You can also follow us on Instagram - account = USGSBIML Want some Useful Links to the Techniques We Use? Well now here you go Citizen: Art Photo Book: Bees: An Up-Close Look at Pollinators Around the World www.qbookshop.com/products/216627/9780760347386/Bees.html... Basic USGSBIML set up: www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-_yvIsucOY USGSBIML Photoshopping Technique: Note that we now have added using the burn tool at 50% opacity set to shadows to clean up the halos that bleed into the black background from "hot" color sections of the picture. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdmx_8zqvN4 PDF of Basic USGSBIML Photography Set Up: ftp://ftpext.usgs.gov/pub/er/md/laurel/Droege/How%20to%20Take%20MacroPhotographs%20of%20Insects%20BIML%20Lab2.pdf Google Hangout Demonstration of Techniques: plus.google.com/events/c5569losvskrv2nu606ltof8odo or www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c15neFttoU Excellent Technical Form on Stacking: www.photomacrography.net/ Contact information: Sam Droege sdroege@usgs.gov 301 497 5840 | ||||
