Pussy Willow is insect pollinated

[bunn]

I never knew that before!  But a few days ago I found a pussy willow tree basking in the morning sunlight, and it was all over bees, hoverflies, wasps, and even a rather raggedy peacock butterfly left over from last year was feeding enthusiastically (I wonder where it went when it snowed?)   I had always assumed that plants with catkins were wind-pollinated, but in this case, clearly not.

Sadly I did not have my camera with me, so here's a brimstone butterfly feeding on a violet instead.

Comments

[oloriel]

I only learned that when I did my beekeeping intro, too. Willow and hazel don't have to invest in flashy flowers because they flower so early (hardly any competition!), so they don't need to bribe the bees with heaps of nectar or lure them in with bright "signs". So they've got economy class "blossoms" and still get first class service. ^^

[bunn]

I'd say that willows were cheapskates, only pussy willow can look pretty impressive when all over flowers, so perhaps it's just that my expectations were pitched wrong...

[oloriel]

They're thrifty - making the most out of simple means! ;)

[puddleshark.livejournal.com]

Lovely Brimstone-on-violet shot! It has been a fantastic year for Brimstones here - I don't ever remember seeing so many of them along the lanes.

Yes, I love seeing all the big queen bumblebees bumbling massively among the fluffy catkins at this time of year.

[ylla.livejournal.com]

I didn't know that larches had flowers, but they have excitingly bright pink ones!

(Possibly they are not flowers at all, but they look just like flowers and act just like flowers, so...)

[bunn.livejournal.com]

Oddly, I don't remember every noticing bees on pussy willow before; I suppose it is not that often that we get warm dry weather in March/April, but still, I feel most unobservant that I must have just walked clean past them!

[bunn.livejournal.com]

My automatic reaction to that was 'Noooooooo' but having googled for them, they look familiar so I guess I knew that but... somehow had not registered it under 'larch flowers!'