There is a leaf-cutter bee (Megachile centuncularis) busy building a nest somewhere in my back garden. It is particularly exercised by an upturned porcelain flower pot, and spends a considerable time flying and bumping against it, as if the bee finds it difficult to get a grip on the pot’s shiny surface. That’s ok for me, since the surface of the pot provides a pleasing photographic background.
The leaf-cutter bee gets its name from its habit of cutting circular holes in leaves – it uses the leaf matter for nesting. The bee is small (by bee standards) and it is the female that does the cutting. In the photo above, the bee is using its jaws to cut a hole in the leaf.
Holes left in leaves after the leaf-cutter bee has paid a visit.
All of the pictures were taken in natural light (i.e. no flash) with a Canon 5D Mk III fitted with a Canon 100mm macro lens.