HE MAY look soft and furry – but don't be fooled. "Out of all the species of bees that I've photographed during this project, this little guy was the only one that actually looked up at me and bared its mandibles," says photographer Clay Bolt.
Bolt has set himself the task of documenting every native North American bee. The project was borne out of the realisation that one species – Apis mellifera – was grabbing the limelight in US coverage of colony collapse disorder, and it wasn't even a native bee. There are nearly 4000 more, from the rusty-patched bumble bee to this one, called the (Megachile melanophaea).
Female leafcutter bees chew small circles from the edge of leaves, and use these to form tubular cells. Into each tube, she deposits a ball of pollen and an egg. The larva will feed on the pollen when it hatches.
And the flamboyant gold leg manes? "Some males in this group have very furry front legs, which are used to cover the eyes of females during mating," says Bolt. He speculates that this is to stop the females being distracted by other males during copulation.
This article appeared in print under the headline "Sweet chile of mine"
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