I had spotted the little native bee on the waterlily, then suddenly along came this beautiful green bee. I've only seen one once before, early in my project.
Thanks so much for the kind comments and favs on yesterday's waterlily with the native bee.
Wow! Totally amazing shot! The little flying bug just looks frozen in space!
I think your little guy is one of these: http://www.aussiebee.com.au/lestis.html
It sounds like they can sting too:
"Q5. Do native bees sting?
Australia has over 1,500 species of native bees. Only ten of these species are stingless! These are the social native bees, Tetragonula and Austroplebeia (see Q4 above).
All the other native bees in Australia can sting. Most species are too small to deliver an effective sting and Australian native bees are not aggressive. However, if one of the larger native bees is picked up or trodden on, it is quite capable of stinging.
Most stings are not as painful as those of a bull ant or paper wasp and last only a few minutes. However, a native bee can sting more than once and it is possible to be allergic to the sting of a native bee. So please treat native bees with respect."
(From http://www.aussiebee.com.au/faq.html#Anchor-Q5-14210)
@alia_801 Thank you Alia, you found him! The little native bee that is a blur in this shot does not sting but this fellow is reasonably large in comparison.
@catsmeowb Alia has answered your query, which is, yes they do sting :)
I think your little guy is one of these: http://www.aussiebee.com.au/lestis.html
It sounds like they can sting too:
"Q5. Do native bees sting?
Australia has over 1,500 species of native bees. Only ten of these species are stingless! These are the social native bees, Tetragonula and Austroplebeia (see Q4 above).
All the other native bees in Australia can sting. Most species are too small to deliver an effective sting and Australian native bees are not aggressive. However, if one of the larger native bees is picked up or trodden on, it is quite capable of stinging.
Most stings are not as painful as those of a bull ant or paper wasp and last only a few minutes. However, a native bee can sting more than once and it is possible to be allergic to the sting of a native bee. So please treat native bees with respect."
(From http://www.aussiebee.com.au/faq.html#Anchor-Q5-14210)
@catsmeowb Alia has answered your query, which is, yes they do sting :)