Initially I couldn’t figure out what large insect this Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) had captured on Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. When the bluebird turned to the side, however, I realized that it was a Handsome Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum pulchellum), one of my favorite insects. The bluebird beat the insect against the log on which it was perched, presumably to subdue the katydid or to break open its hard shell, before consuming it.
It is hard to truly appreciate the beauty of the multi-colored katydid from a distance, so I am including a close-up photo of a Handsome Meadow Katydid from a posting that I did in August 2013 that was entitled “Rainbow grasshopper.” Check out my thoughts and feelings in that post about one of my initial encounters with such a katydid.
Still, bluebirds have to eat too, so I experienced only a brief moment of sorrow at the demise of this beautiful little creature.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nice capture of the Bluebird with his prey. The grasshopper alone is a cool image, with him all stretched out on that red branch.
I want ot see that Katydid in real life! Amazing.
I like how the blue of the insect’s eye matches the blue of the bluebird. At least it looks that way to me but I’m colorblind so I can never be 100% sure.
I agree about the color match of the blues–both are a beautiful shade of blue.
Great post, Mike! What a wonderful connection between your close up in the previous post about the Katydid, and this wonderful image of the bluebird having this insect for a snack.
Thanks. I tend to focus so much on getting new shots that I sometimes forget that I have taken a lot of good shots in the past. It’s nice sometimes to remind myself and others of some of those past postings–knowledge and experience tend to be cumulative.
So true!