Flying jewels

This has been an oddly bug-free spring. A few bumblebees, a lonely spider or two, a stray mosquito, three or four carpet beetles; that's been all we've seen for a long time.

That has changed. The sunlight outside my window is bright with flying things, bees and wasps and a tiny moth. Down on the dunes, the ants are swarming, and cabbage moths led me a merry chase, without any luck, of course. Cleaning up the garden this afternoon, I woke a big, black beetle. The spiders are back in business. Good times are coming!

On the hydrangea, I found this syrphid fly, who obligingly posed for me just beyond where I could reach without danger of falling into the leaves.

In the sunlight, he glowed, especially that golden vest.

And I managed to get close enough to the clematis to catch this bee arriving.

I didn't know their wings bent when they were flying. No wonder they're so agile in the air!

The clematis, sans bee.