Flying into 2018...

Native Australian Bee, Amegilla sp., or Blue Banded Bee flying to a Lavender in search of nectar. Its mouthparts are already dropped down in anticipation of finding nectar. The second picture in the insert clearly shows the blue bands on the Bee's body, hence the common name Blue Banded Bee.

These native bees live individually in burrows in the ground, or between mortar in brick walls, not in hive communities. They lay eggs and hoard food stocks for the hatchlings emerging in the following Spring. Sensitive to temperature, the Amegilla bee only becomes active around end of October (mid-Spring) and are the first to disappear when it turns cold in Autumn. On cloudy cool days they do not fly or work, but stay at home in their burrow.