^traxavator on steep slopes^. That sounds like a job that was offered to my brother many years ago, after he finished Caterpillar A-School in the U.S. Army National Guard. The job was out in the mountains of Colorado, where rock slides off long steep slopes are common. One large Cat would be chained to a smaller Cat in front of it (a long chain), and the big one would lower the smaller one down a slope, clearing loose rocks and boulders. The chains were long so the big Cat stayed up where the slope stayed less than 30 degrees, whereas the small Cat approached 60 degrees. The company made this job available to all graduates of the NG Cat program, but few ever accepted it.

But to your photo, R., this looks like the bee fly common in the Rocky Mountains. Great focus, as always, on the wee flowers and those beveled glass wings and the bee itself. I imagine that in Britain these are considered pollinators as much as regular bees are. Zooming in I can see specks of pollen on the head and body.

Have a good weekend.

-nik

Impressive details and clarity!

R. You did a great job on this one. �S.

Terrific clarity and detail!

Excellent macro work evident here!