Fiery Skipper butterfly

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Fiery Skipper butterfly

June 7, 2013 by Mike Powell

I have trouble identifying a lot of my photographic subjects, but skipper butterflies are among the toughest. Wikipedia says that are more than 3500 recognized species of skippers worldwide, so I don’t feel too bad about my difficulties.

As I perused photos on the internet, I came across a few shot of butterflies that looked at lot like the one that I photographed, and on that basis I am going to tentatively identify it as a Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus).

I like the way in which the skipper was lit and he stayed perched long enough to permit to use my macro lens.

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Portraits | Tagged brookside gardens, butterfly, Canon 100mm macro lens, Canon Rebel XT, Fiery Skipper, Fiery Skipper butterflu, Wheaton MD | 6 Comments

6 Responses

on June 7, 2013 at 10:12 pm | Reply Sid Dunnebacke

Fabulous shot, Mike. I also have a time with identifying my butterfly (and dragonfly) friends – a good field guide is my best friend at those moments.
- on June 8, 2013 at 4:13 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Sid. Ideally I’d have a bird guide, a butterfly guide, a dragonfly and damselfly guide……I’d hardly have room for my camera.
on June 8, 2013 at 7:10 am | Reply New Hampshire Gardener

I feel your pain. Butterflies always seem very hard to identify for me as well.
on June 8, 2013 at 8:20 am | Reply Sue

Nice one! Did you ever get to see the pattern on the upper side of the wings? Sometimes that is a help to their ID, but I know that skippers don’t pose like that for you.
on July 10, 2013 at 10:48 am | Reply Clouded Skipper Butterfly | Winged Beauty

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on July 17, 2013 at 11:09 am | Reply Skipper Butterfly | Winged Beauty

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