Prickly Pear Cactus blooms and its inhabitants...

[lextalionis]

I went for a stroll along the ridge path behind my office at lunch today with my camera. I walked up on this patch of Prickly Pear Cactus in full bloom:

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#4 These beetles loved the pollen inside the blooms

#5 Can anyone identify these beetles?

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#8 This bumblebee was HUGE; in fact, I heard him flying before I saw him. Notice the size of the beetle above in the yellow bloom, this beetle was ~ the size of my thumb nail. The head alone is bigger than these beetles. One shot and he took off quickly

-Roy

 

[NikonLady52]

What a great series..Especially the insects..Wow!