Images by Cheri

Featured here is the Digger bee enjoying the (wildly invasive) nightshade bloom.

Female Anthophora practice buzz pollination — that is, they vibrate their wing muscles, shaking pollen from the anthers of flowers. These bees are exceptionally effective pollinators and play an important role in maintaining wildflower diversity, in part because their long tongues allow them to pollinate deep-throated and tubular blossoms inaccessible to many bees.

Source: Sharp, Paula and Ross Eatman. “Anthophora.” Wild Bees of the National Butterfly Center of Mission, Texas. 15 Jan. 2019, http://www.wildbeestexas.com/