Thanks L-B.............., as we have yr wallpaper taken care of, perhaps you'd like another for yr screensaver
http://lamma.hk/image_files/wasps/full/DSC_2869

Good news................ I'm fed up with posting pics of Honey Bees (Apis millifera)
The link is of a gallery I put together for anybody still interested:

http://lamma.hk/image_files/wasps/Honey_Bees/index

Also some info about them for anybody interested:

There are three types of honeybees in a hive: Thousands of female WORKERs, hundreds of male DRONEs, & only one QUEEN.
Male bees are called drones. They emerge in 24 days, larger than the female workers. They have large eyes and no stinger. They lead a life of leisure, doing no work while being fed by the workers. Their sole purpose is to mate with a queen from any hive, thereby transfering the genetic traits of their mother. They die upon mating, or are expelled from the hive as winter approaches.

Worker bees gather pollen which they stick to their back legs, to carry back to the hive where it is used as food. Pollen from the stamens of one flower, stick to their bodies, and is carried to another flower where it rubs off onto the pistil, resulting in cross pollination.
Nectar is sucked up through the proboscis, mixed with enzymes in the stomach, and carried back to the hive, where it is stored in wax cells and evaporated into honey.
Worker bees must maintain the hive's brood chamber at 94 degrees F to incubate the eggs. If it is too hot, they collect water and deposit it around the hive, then fan air through with their wings causing cooling by evaporation. If it is too cold, they cluster together to generate body heat.
The queen lays about 1200 eggs per day, about 200,000 per season. This is necessary since worker bees only live 6 weeks in the summertime; and a colony needs to have 40 to 50 thousand bees at its peak. She is cared for by the worker bees.

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

These are really fantastic! Your very best macro photos so far!

Consider your bee shooting phase successfully completed, only a few more millions of other insect species to cover worldwide...

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Thanks L-B - just fed up with sorting them out & not being able to decide which to post - but I was only referring to Honey Bees - there are others, but just not about at the moment.
If I get any decent pics will stick them on the gallery rather than posting them, think everybody is getting tired of them.

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Since the "Breaking News" on HK TV tonight seems to be about fire ants, when can we see any pictures of yours of fire ants?

They're spreading to HK, they might have made it to Lamma as well already?

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All you need to know about Fire Ants is at :
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/fireants/

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Some time ago I noticed several holes in the bamboo handle of our garden broom & wondered what it was that caused them. Now I know the answer.

If you look at the mouth area, you can see the beginning of a hole where the bee has been boring away at the bamboo. The "beak" area is like a small pneumatic drill.
I presume it is the makings of a nest.
There were 2 of them at work today, but working on separate holes.

The bee is probably about 1.5-2" long so is quite a big chap. Not something you'd want to mess with. Beware those holes in the garden broom shaft & putting yr hand over them.

All these little life mysteries that can be resolved with the fullness of time.

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Another rooftop visitor!!

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Another rooftop visitor...........

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Wasps hate soapy water in a spary bottle. it makes their wings immobile or use a mixture of pine cleaner and soapy water in a spray bottle. after you
immobilise the wasps light the nest on fire. they will never return also becareful of setting out your mops and things outside they will build a nest in them too. if you are not careful.

Another wasp that has so far managed to avoid the dreaded spray gun....

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Is slightly different & smaller than the wasp/hornet posted earlier....

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Another close up...

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Face off - Killer Hornet vs Ordinary Run of the Mill Hornet

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis

Big Wow! Both of them in mid-flight, a really amazing shot!
I'll never take pictures of Lamma insects again, it would just make me look bad...

Who won the encounter above? Or was it a friendly fly-by?

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There doesn't appear to be enough rotting banana in that last shot for it to be entirely genuine

Will there be any sandwiches?

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My real name isn't Harry.
Slurp my bean juice.

Banana and peanut butter on whole grain ... yum!

Wasps/bees are optional, but they do add crunch.

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Lead me not into temptation;
I can find it myself, thank you.

Bananas. Who's bananas?


(sorry he wouldn't line up his wings properly for the shot.)

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My inability to tolerate your ambiguity is compounding my neurosis