For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, today is the first day of autumn. In my area, today’s high temperature is forecast to reach 90 degrees (32 degrees C), so it does not really feel like autumn yet. However, it is beginning to look like autumn, with browns and orange tones starting to appear in the landscape.
Fortunately there are still lots of butterflies around, like this Viceroy Butterfly (Limenitis archippus) that I spotted last Wednesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The color palette of this shot really speaks to me of this new season.
Given that seasons are determined differently in different places by using meteorological or astrological calendars, I probably should try to be scrupulously inclusive and wish everyone a Happy September Equinox Day rather than Happy Autumn.
UPDATE: I took this shot while photowalking with fellow photographer and blogger, Walter Sanford. We did not talk about when we/if we might post an image of this butterfly, but it turns out he also posted one today. Checking out his posting if you like to read another take on our adventure and see a slightly different approach to photographing this butterfly. Walter and I have different backgrounds that affect the way we express ourselves in our words and in our images. Our complementary posts help to remind me that “reality” is as much subjective as it is objective.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nice Mike! Liked the brown leaves surrounding the butterfly. We still have quite a few butterflies around us, but most look the worse for wear! They do seem to have a hard life! I have been working on a series of butterflies with softer backgrounds with long lenses, but it is tough to get the whole butterfly sharp. But it is fun to experiment! Always enjoy seeing your images!
Splendid. And happy Equinox Day to you too.
Great photo, Mike. It looks like you have a little bit of autumn in that image.
Beautiful photograph, Mike. I love the Autumnal colours but also the contrast between the delicate wings and the crisp, spikey leaves.
Super shot Mike!
The viceroy posed very nicely for you. Happy Equinox Day, even though I’m a bit late. Your photo speaks strongly of autumn to me, contrasting strongly with our spring. Thanks for the reminder about Equinox Day as my next post will have a subtle hint of autumn – even in the midst of our spring! Your post is lovely.. thank you!