A day in the life of a tiny bee

The other day, I noticed this little bee struggling to get out of a dandelion. From the way it moved, I would have thought it was drunk:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO100, f8, 1/250s}

It dismounted the flower by dropping ungraciously into the grass:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO800, f5.6, 1/50s}

After a short and unsteady walk along a blade of grass, it then fell onto a leaf, and I noticed its hind legs were stuck together with pollen, which explained the way it had been walking:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO400, f5.6, 1/160s}

It descended further by falling down the leaf, losing some pollen on the way, which freed its hind legs:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO400, f8, 1/60s}

Finally in a more stable place and state, having lost some of the sticky stuff, it then started to clean itself.

As a small shaft of light, like a miniature theatre spot, provided some extra light, it started working on its antennae:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO400, f8, 1/125s}

Cleaning its snout was next:

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 42mm, ISO400, f8, 1/125s}

It then proceeded to the next flower, a smaller one. Maybe a good idea: 8mm-long bees shouldn't go for dandelions, no matter how hungry they are. There's a lesson there somewhere.

Thank you for watching this reportage.