The news in the Hymenoptera community of the UF Natural Area Teaching Lab (NATL) located behind the Museum: “Bidens, which were in full bloom just three weeks ago, have now all gone to seed, but the Golden Rod’s sweet nectar and abundant pollen are ripe for the plucking instead.”

And while Homo sapiens are arguing whether Golden Rods are “flowers” or “weeds,” despite the absurdity of such a classification, the more intelligent social (and sometimes solitary) animals are taking advantage of the resource.

Here are a few photos from the past week: