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Dont feel sorry


Dont feel sorry
Photo Information
Copyright: Felipe Mateo and Cristina (extramundi) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1887 W: 336 N: 4264] (13146)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2005-01-06
Categories: Insects
Camera: Sony DSC-F717
Exposure: f/8, 1/1000 seconds
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Theme(s): Bees [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2005-01-06 16:49
Viewed: 6348
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 28
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
This post is dedicated to Paul (PDP), although he will probably not see it now. I hope he recovers from his illness soon and join us again.

This is a bumblebee (Hymenoptera Aculeate I think) parasited by an acarus, probably a Deutonymph of Parasitellus talparum.

At first I felt sad for this bumblebee, it was very disturbed and trying to get rid of his parasites, I thought his had only hours of life ahead, but if you read this note you will discover that is a transportation to the tasty food, and can even be beneficial to the colonies.

THIS IS A SCALED IMAGE

Family Parasitidae
This family is distributed worldwide and includes about 400 species grouped in 2 subfamiles: Parasitinae and Pergamasinae. Parasitid mites are essentially predatory and feed upon other microarthropodes, including their eggs, and on nematodes. They live in moss, forest litter, soil, dung, rotting seaweed, decaying organic substances, caves, and nests of small mammals and insects. These mites disperse during the deutonymph stage, usually on insects of the orders Coleoptera and Hymenoptera. All species of the genus Parasitellus are obligatory associates of bumblebees (Bombus).

Genus Parasitellus
This genus includes 11 species that inhabit nests of bumblebees (Bombus). Occasionally they occur in beehives or borrows of small mammals. Deutonymphs are commonly phoretic on the adult bumblebees or cuckoo bumblebees. Since bumblebee colonies are annual and only young queens overwinter, mite deutonymphs are able to distinguish between queens and other castes (workers, males). Although the mites may disperse on all castes of bumblebees, they prefer queens, and never move from a queen to a male. Mites dispersing on workers and males may try to switch to queens later, either during copulation or on flowers, where bumblebees forage.
The species of Parasitellus, although only associated with bumblebees, are not specific to a particular species of host, with species often co-occurring in individual Bombus nests. The lack of host specificity in this group may be the result of host switching in flowers by cockoo bumblebees, or by queens that visit old nests with overwintered deutonymphs. In the nests of a single bumblebee species, mites can disperse due to queen supersedure or invasion of workers or queens from different nests.
The exact nature of the association between these mites and their bumblebee hosts is uncertain, although predatory behavior toward acarid mites and other parasitid mites was suggested. If these mites feed preferentially on potentially damaging acarid mites, they may be beneficial to colony health.

I took the info from THIS SITE.

Hope you like!

F8 - 1/1000 - Flash - Handheld - Manual mode.
PP. Crop, S&H, Saturation adjust, frame, resize, USM.
novaman, Robbrown, rlortie, red45, carper, willie, Luc, Callie, Midi, Janice has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To red45: It is not cruelextramundi 4 01-08 04:40
No sabía que Paul era enfermoLuc 2 01-06 18:13
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Critiques [Translate]

Good shot my frend and very interesting.
I have lot fotos of bumblebee but its the first time i see this thing.Good job!!!

Good clear shot of the Bumble Bees and the Mite Load it is carrying is one of the clearest i have seen if these. intresting set of notes too.

Very good macro shot. But the main interest here is the outstanding note you wrote about this parasite. Thank you very much for the pic and the information Felipe.

  • Great 
  • red45 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2645 W: 74 N: 9100] (31089)
  • [2005-01-07 4:55]
  • [+]

Cruel world, one eats another... Great, interesting note Felipe. Sad shot but of course it is nature.

Anyway I prefer photos of bumblebees without those little Mites.

Composition: ****
Sharpness: ***
Color: ***
DOF: *
POV: ***

Good shot, focus a bit soft.
TFS

Well seen Felipe,
That's life one death the other lifes from the death just like people. Very good shot ofcoarse Felipe, great note, good job

  • Great 
  • willie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1023 W: 61 N: 648] (2083)
  • [2005-01-07 13:59]

Great macro. Excellent interesting note. Great post.

  • Great 
  • Luc Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1843 W: 304 N: 4304] (14755)
  • [2005-01-08 1:45]

An excellent post, Felipe.
I looked this picture than the scaled image.
I read the note and went to the refered site.
I saw and learned things I did not know before. I am less ignorant than before I checked your post. Even if you do not want it, you change my life!
Thanks a lot!
Now I will read the others members' critiques.

Hi Felipe
look a lot like ticks, just smaller, than the one's nearly always present on wild animals. I like this picture, especially for portrayong MORE than just the BB.
As for patience - I am very impatien by nature, and NOT a morning person at all. However, when it comes to photography, I can get uP @ 03h30 to get to a site and wait hours, often wih the sweat running in rivulets down my back, just to maybe "catch" the moment. I really try to "catch the moment" the challenge is the thing, and then sometimes, a small success.
But shooting fungi and strange things is also nice.

  • Great 
  • japie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1814 W: 100 N: 1904] (5187)
  • [2005-01-09 0:30]

What an interesting shot and note! This is a first for mee and I have now learnt a lot from this.

The sharpness and detail is superb and the exposure excellent.

Very well done and thanks for posting

  • Great 
  • Midi Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 146 W: 24 N: 183] (2418)
  • [2005-01-09 9:01]

Never seen parasites on a bumble bee, thanks for the photo and the note. Nice shot.

  • Great 
  • Janice Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3286 W: 148 N: 6163] (18826)
  • [2005-01-11 3:21]

A very good macro of this Bumble Bee with the parasitic mites Felipe. It is so interesting seeing it and reading your notes. TFS.

  • Great 
  • livios Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2152 W: 322 N: 4262] (16944)
  • [2005-01-11 22:22]

Felipe, sua foto é rara. Você captou um momento muito interessante. Excelente trabalho.

Lívio

Hi Felipe,

What a very nice closeup from that BumbleBee. Interesting INFO you wrote about this parasite. I think it's a worldwide problem. POV, BG and DOF are perfect. Colours are very naturel. Regards and TFS Bob

Yesss indeed you are right about paraites,
excellent shot, perfect focus with many great details on this one,
excellent work Felipe,
bravo
friendly,
Pat

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