Flying bumblebee between spring flowers

Bumblebee between flowers

03/2012 The bumblebee hovers like a helicopter between the spring blossoms on a tree in our garden. I took the picture from the balcony. With a 400mm telephoto lens, everything from small insects to large bumblebees can be photographed as if from close up. How wonderful that such a colorful hustle and bustle can be frozen in 1000/s. But the wings of the flying bumblebee are too fast even for such a short exposure time. No wonder - a lot has to happen to keep such a heavy animal like the bumblebee in the air. The animal only flies with a physical trick (see bumblebee paradox). The wings of the bumblebee are not stiff, but flexible, thereby maximizing lift at around 10 wing beats per second.