I was delighted this past Wednesday to spot several Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) during a visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I often see news stories about Monarchs being threatened or becoming endangered, so I am happy whenever I see some. The ones that I saw looked to be in perfect condition—perhaps they have recently emerged and are preparing for migration.
I tried several different angles when photographing this Monarch. The first photo shows the detail of the butterfly best, but I really like the way that I was able to capture the curve of the vegetation in the second shot by shooting in a vertical format.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Beautiful
The Monarchs are so beautiful. My daughter and I went for a walk yesterday afternoon and spotted one near our local pond. It made me happy because we see so few of them these days.
That’s exactly my feeling when I spot a Monarch, Michelle. This summer has been a bit better than the previous couple of years, when I spotted only a handful of Monarchs.
Have raised so many here I want to keep them safe from evil weather south of us. 🙂
Kudos on raising Monarchs. The weather right now in the south is terrible–the scenes of devastation are heart-wrenching.
It is absolutely sickening to see so much destruction and loss from humans to animals and the property and the earth they all lived on 😦
Beautiful! Good luck to miss monarch on her journey.
Wonderful photographs of a gorgeous butterfly from any angle!
They are always so beautiful.
Beautiful.