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July 19, 2010

did you know....

that bees collect pollen
in their pollen pockets
~
did you even know they had pockets
?
somehow in science class i missed this
and
even having raised two children
who had years and years of science classes
i still missed this
~
the bad thing
is that i have always loved science
and
hated math
which means
i can catch garden snakes
and
could care less what pi is or equals
~
maybe this late life learning will help keep my mind young
~
i can only hope
*
just in case you were passing notes in science class too, see that bright yellow blob near the bee's bottom ? that's a pocket full of pollen. cool, huh ?

23 comments:

  1. Thanks -- I thought they carried the pollen on their feet! Silly me!

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  2. what a great picture. he's sacked a lot of pollen. one busy guy. hope all is well. have a great day.

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  3. yes elizabeth....the pockets are on their legs....so you are right :)

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  4. looks like fancy jodhpurs or going marketing with a recyclable yellow bag - funny...

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  5. GMTA. I have a couple of pollen sack photos here at the end of this post:
    http://chroniclesofacountrygirl.blogspot.com/2010/06/little-water-would-do-us-good.html

    I guess I never realized it either!

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  6. I must admit, scientific illustration was my major in college, so, yes, technically I'm a science & art nerd, and yes, I did know that.
    It's still cool though, and it's always a hoot to watch the bees busy at work on the flowers in bloom, and quite a challenge to snap a shot of them in action that isn't blurry — at least for my beleaguered kodak anyway.
    : )

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  7. Your mind is so young...I love bees, in a book I am reading right now they talk about how the movements they make when they come back to the hive tell the other bees where to go to find the pollen, like three spins to the right, one to the left...how cool it that?

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  8. AnonymousJuly 19, 2010

    i never realized that til recently either. great capture! n

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  9. We've been learning all about bees now that we have some hives here for the bee keeper. Did you know they have 5 eyes? I can relate to the fact that I probably didn't even know how 'pi' was spelled but love to know about pollen pockets!

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  10. OMG...I had no idea. How cute is that...pollen pockets! Beautiful photo!

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  11. AnonymousJuly 19, 2010

    How are you going to count all those snakes you catch if you don't know math? LOL

    DI
    JUST KIDDING!!

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  12. I must have missed that class too. interesting, little pockets, thanks for sharing the knowledge.

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  13. That is cool!! And I missed that too!
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  14. Always wondered where they stashed the pollen! Used to hate it when I saw bees in the garden -- till I learned what they did and why it matters. Now I wish I had more! Except wasps.

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  15. This bee must have been working around the clock. I am still amazed how anyone could take a picture of a small bee like this.

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  16. Well you're certainly not alone there. Love science.. hate math. And never knew about the pockets. Very cool.

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  17. When they covered the birds and the bees I missed this too:) I always thought pollen was carried on their feet...

    I loved science and hated math too...but you wouldn't ever catch me trying to catch a snake!!

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  18. Wow - his pockets look full! Live and learn, I guess...

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  19. I love seeing the honey bees with their pockets full of pollen. Beautiful!

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  20. Well, I keep saying this is the best, but this is the best. I am in love with Mr. Pollen Pockets and in love with your words. I always loved math because it didn't require dissecting anything, but now that I'm a grown up girl with absolute proof that I did need to know geometry, I find myself fascinated with all that science stuff I missed out on. It is all magic to me.

    :) Debi

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  21. bees are the best! they can do all these amazing things, they are always busy and out world would be fruitless without them. i love bees.

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  22. I didn't know about pollen pockets, either! I thought the pollen just stuck to their legs...very cool!

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  23. Aren't bees amazing? They have become one of my favorite things to photograph. =)

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**I love reading the comments you leave, as they make me feel like we're sitting in my kitchen, having a cup of tea, discussing life and wondering where all the time has gone ...beth