Insect Picture of the Day

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Oooh, pretty eyes. Andrew Lin caught a much more respectable-looking Calliopsis bee this time. He sent in this picture noting that, though it’s slightly soft-focused, the reflections of the oregano in her eye were really striking. I agree.

And so does the biology community. Are you ready for some serious name calling? Yesterday I joked about the Latin meaning of the name. If you break Calliopsis into its root parts, you end up with the roots callum, meaning “rough or hardened” (the English word “callus” is a direct transplant from Latin), and ops, meaning “power” or “riches”.

Hmm. “Rough Power Bee” sounds more like an Anime superhero than a bug. And “Hardened Riches Bee” sounds more like an investment portfolio. What gives?

It’s not actually Latin. It’s Greek.

Look again at that bee. What do you notice about it first?

Calli is Greek for “more beautiful”, and opsis is Greek for “A sight / vision / outward appearance / eyesight”. Put them together, and what do you get?

Oooh, pretty eyes.

P.S. I love the color and patterning of the oregano. Andrew sent in a bonus picture, if you’re interested. It’s gorgeous, and it has a great butt-shot of a Calliopsis if you’re into that sort of thing:

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