Monthly Archives: August 2019

Black-and-gold bumble bee (Bombus auricomus)

black-and-gold bumble bee
Photo by Gerry Garcia

Black-and-gold bumble bee (Bombus auricomus) is common, large, colonial bumble bee. It occurs in North America east of the Rocky mountains. It is common in southern Minnesota, less common in the north. It is one of the largest bumble bees in Minnesota. Females (worker bees) are up to ¾″ long. It is found in grasslands and open areas. It lives in small colonies of about 35 workers.

Black-and-gold bumble bee is identified by its large size; there is a patch of yellow hairs on the back of the head; the thorax that is yellow on the front third, black on the rear two thirds, and has a very narrow yellow band at the rear; and the abdomen is black except for the entirely yellow second and third segments.

http://www.minnesotaseasons.com/Insects/black-and-gold_bumble_bee.html

Slender spreadwing (Lestes rectangularis)

slender spreadwing
Photo by Dan W. Andree

Slender spreadwing (Lestes rectangularis) is one of the most common and one of the most easily recognized damselflies in Minnesota. It occurs in the United States from the East Coast to the Great Plains and in adjacent Canadian provinces. It is found in partially shaded areas in marshes, ponds, lakes, and still backwaters of slow streams.

Adults are about 1½″ to 2″ long. The male thorax is dark brown with yellow sides and wide blue or gray shoulder stripes. The abdomen is dark brown above, yellow on the sides, and extremely long, about twice as long as the wings. The wings are clear with a dark spot near the tip and a pale vein around the tip. The female is similar but has light brown shoulder stripes on the thorax and a shorter and stockier abdomen.

http://www.minnesotaseasons.com/Insects/slender_spreadwing.html