Insects Face Off

Insects face off

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee! Insects face off in battle to gain control of pollen-laden flower

Red Admiral butterfly and bee target the same food source famed for battling colds

The bee wins control of the plant in the award winning estate gardens

To some it might just be another wild flower, but to these two creatures the Echinacea plant meant a lot more.

A Red Admiral butterfly was happily dining on the flower, known for its immune system boosting benefits, when a bumble bee decided to get in on the action.

Grubs up: a war erupts between a bee and a butterfly over lunch

A quick tussle ensued in the award winning West Dean College gardens with the butterfly initially holding firm on top of the purple leaves.

  

Lunch: A bee and a butterfly battle for space on the Echinacea plant

 However, the smaller, but noisier insect persisted and eventually gained control of the plant in the Sussex Estate.

Eventually the more delicate creature flew away to find an alternative source of food.

But the butterfly will not have gone hungry as the gardens are spread out over 6,350 acres.

  

The gardens have been awarded an English Heritage Garden Grade of II* and feature a restored walled kitchen garden with 13 Victorian glasshouses.

  

The Purple Coneflower is a popular source of nectar and pollen for both butterflies and bees.

  

This native North American wildflower blooms in early to mid-summer and, left intact for the winter, its flowers can also provide a seed source for birds. 

It is a favourite nectar plant for the Great Spangled Fritillary, Pearl Crescent and Red Admiral butterflies.

One of the many flowers you can plant to encourage Honey, Bumble Bees and Butterfly's in your garden.

Help the bees, grow plants that have pollen and nectar.