There has been an explosion of butterflies in the last few weeks in my area. Throughout most of the summer, I felt lucky when I managed to spot a few large, colorful butterflies. All of the sudden I am seeing lots of butterflies in multiple locations at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Here are a few of my favorite butterfly shots from a visit to the wildlife refuge last Friday. Quite often I will focus on a single species in a blog posting, but in this case I like the way that these three images work as a set that highlights the beauty and diversity of these wonderful creatures that I was blessed to photograph that day.
The butterfly in the first image is a Monarch (Danaus plexippus); the butterfly in the second image is a Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus); and the butterfly in the third image is a Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes).
I like each of the photographs for different reasons, but, if pressed, I would probably say that the final one is my favorite. Do you have a favorite?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
I’d also place Papilio polyxenes as a favorite in part because I so seldom see it where I live which makes it all the more special.
Thanks for weighing in, Gary. My preferences seem to vary a bit depending on my mood–sometimes I focus on colors, while at other times I give greater weight to lighting. 🙂
It’s a tie for me, between the first and third. I find the dark background and spacing around the Monarch and bloom to make a very pleasing composition.
And I’ve always been partial to photographs of the side view of butterfly with his legs working through a blossom as your swallowtail is doing. The dreamy background is nice, too.
So glad to hear that you are seeing more butterflies, Mike. We still are not… a few here and there, but not what I’ve seen other years.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about the images. It really was the “dreamy background” that attracted me to the final photo–so many of my butterflies have green backgrounds from all the vegetation and this one seemed light and almost ethereal.
Gorgeous
We’ve very few butterflies in NZ (but loads of moths) ~I’m fascinated by all butterflies I see in overseas photos. So my preference is based on my species-interest rather than photo attributes and I’d have to choose the Zebra Swallowtail coz I’m *endlessly* fascinated by the zebra-stripes of this species! 😀
Thanks, Liz. The Zebra Swallowtail is probably the hardest of the three species to photograph, because it moves around a lot and does not perch for long. Its “tails” are also really long, when intact, and the little pops of color amid the zebra stripes really make it stand out.
Maybe with the state of this world they wanted extra time in that cocoon I know I would lol
I certainly would not blame them for that. 🙂
🙂