What interesting creatures live in your garden?

[thistlebloom]

We found this mighty mouse in our flat 2 days ago. It was just too darn cute to kill, so we snapped a few quick pics and released it outside

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I would have released him too Sumi. He can't help where his mama decided to raise him.

 

[sumi]

I haven't seen this type of mouse here before. It's mom is tiny too, this baby measured 2 inches from start to end and I'm guessing mom's maybe an inch extra?

Confession time, we're moving this month, so I'm not terribly hassled about mice in and around the place at the moment As long as they don't come with us...

 

[Pulsegleaner]

Today while wandering around NYC, I saw, and managed to catch a very curios looking bee. It's more or less the same size and shape as a honey bee (maybe a little broader, hard to tell). and completely black, except for the hind legs which have pale blonde fur (much paler than normal honeybee amber) and possibly a white spot in the center of the thorax (I say "possibly" because I honestly can't tell if it is natural or someone "marked" the bee. I'm hoping the former; I'd hate to have messed up someone's research project by accidentally taking one of the test subjects out of the test range.) I have literally no clue what type of bee it is. I took it to someone who knew and they confirmed it was not a honeybee (I am aware that there are such things as black honeybees, but based on pictures those seem to still usually have some grey/silver stripes) It looks a little like pictures of a carpenter bee, but those are supposed to be HUGE (like bumblebee sized) this isn't. Anyone care to hazard a guess. I'll try and take a picture later (the bee was not happy on the ride home, so I've dug out my old orchid cloche and put it underneath with a potted flower I had around (looks like a mini petunia, according to label, isn't) to see if a little nectar calms it down enough to take a good picture.)

 

[Nyboy]

Bee keeping is against the law in NYC.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

don't worry, I'll release it as soon as I've taken the photo.

And if bee keeping is against the law, where does all that city honey that get's sold at the farmers markets come from.

 

[so lucky]

Surely @Nyboy jests.

 

[Nyboy]

No I not kidding I watched video on under ground bee keeping in NYC. I think it has to due with people being allergic and suing city. Sure honey is from outside city limits

 

[Nyboy]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/15/science/earth/15bees.html?_r=0

 

[Nyboy]

NYC ranks honey bees with hyenas and cobras You can't make this stuff up Only in NY !!

 

[Pulsegleaner]

No I not kidding I watched video on under ground bee keeping in NYC. I think it has to due with people being allergic and suing city. Sure honey is from outside city limits

No it isn't. I saw the jars at the stand and they were very clearly labeled as being from within NYC limits. In fact, most were labeled as being from specific neighborhoods. You could get UES honey, Park Slope Honey, Bed-Stuy honey, Central Park honey etc. Back around the holidays I even got a gift tasting set of NYC honeys (I remember Hell's Kitchen honey was quite unpleasant). I have heard the are some neighborhoods where there is no apiculture, but that tend to be because they aren't considered good choices (for example I remember reading that the various plants put around the Bronx Zoo for the animals means honey from there tastes absolutely foul. I image there is a similar problem with the Botanical Garden(s). How they get around the law I don't know, but that the honey is from within NYC limits I have no doubt.

Well, here is the little buggers glamor photo (or I suppose his mug shot)

As I suspected being in the bigger space calmed him (or probably her, worker bees are genetically female after all) down a lot. In fact it's positively lethargic since I got it home. If I wasn't for the fact that it keeps preening I wouldn't know it was still alive (maybe it'll perk up again when the sun comes up) I guess it just didn't like the agitation in the carrying case.