Towheeblog

Pollen is on mailbox, car window, twigs and walkways.  It abounds right now.  The study of pollen is called palynology.

Bees gather pollen; it has been touted as a treatment for a variety of medical conditions,but there is no good evidence that bee pollen has any health benefits other than as a source of nutrition.  Although there is no specific chemical composition, the average composition is said to be 40–60% simple sugars (fructose and glucose), 20–60% proteins, 3% minerals and vitamins, 1–32% fatty acids, and 5% diverse other components.   A study of bee pollen samples showed that they may contain 188 kinds of fungi and 29 kinds of bacteria.  Despite this microbial diversity, stored pollen (also called bee bread) is a preservation environment similar to honey, and contains consistently low microbial biomass.

Monday I saw a squirrel eating magnolia flowers.  Just the middle, not the petals which drifted to the ground.  He would devour pollen and stamen and embryonic fruit. Yum.

I saw 3 kinds of swallow this morning: Barn, Cliff, V-G.  Swifts too, and a flock of Greater White-fronted Geese going past in flight.  Many of “our” birds: flown northward, or up to mountains.