Philippe Clement / Cotton thistle / Scotch thistle (Onopordum acanthium) in flower, Belgium, July

Gabriel Rojo / Honeybee (Apis melifera) in flight and Cotton thistle (Onopordum acanthium) , La Pampa, Argentina

Nick Upton / Male Violet carpenter bee (Xylocopa violacea) with tatty wings feeding on Scotch / Cotton thistle (Onopordum acanthium), Port Cros Island National Park, Hyeres archipelago, France, May.

Nick Upton / Flower chafers (Oxythyrea funesta) mating on Scotch / Cotton thistle (Onopordum acanthium) flower, Port Cros Island National Park, Hyeres archipelago, France, May.

Juan Manuel Borrero / Bumble bee on Thistle (Onopordum acanthium) Spain

Philippe Clement / Cotton thistle (Onopordum acanthium) growing along edge of farmland, Spain. May.