Australian Bees

Blue banded bees Amegilla cingulata is one of the Australian native bees.

very cute, and perhaps often called "bumblebees" when they aren't

We often get a few of these little fellas hanging around the back yard. Unsurprisingly they have a brightly banded blue abdomen. My wife (who likes bees) reckons that despite the number of good images on the WEB for these little fellas there isn't much really showing off their colour.

They have really shinny eyes ...

There is a more dedicated website here for the interested. But like they say:

Unlike honey bees, blue-banded bees are capable of hovering, which one would assume makes them easier to photograph. This couldn’t be further from the truth, and taking a clear photograph of a blue banded bee in flight is reason for celebration.

 took a bit of time to get even these shots with my FD300mm on my Panasonic GH1

:-)