hairy footed flower bee Anthophora plumipes. Male, feeding on a pulmonaria flower.

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A. plumipes can be found in a variety of habitats, including most gardens, between March and late May. It looks like a small bumblebee, either black (female) or brown (male) but is clearly distinguished from the bumblebees by its flight. It moves very swiftly then stops, hovering for a moment, in front of its chosen flower. This is very different from the slow, steady flight of the bumblebees

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Size: 3387px × 5100px
Location: Oxfordshire UK
Photo credit: © Julian Brooks / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: bee, bee-fly, close, close-, closeup, cu, early, feeding, feet, flower, flying, footed, hairy, insect, legs, long, nectar, nectaries, pink, pollenating, pollenator, pulmonaria, spring, sucking, tongue