Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Travel, wildlife, tagged Bastrop Texas, Canon 7D, Gulf Fritillary, Gulf Fritillary butterfly, Tamron 18-400mm on November 9, 2022| 6 Comments »
I spotted this colorful Gulf Fritillary butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) perched on a cactus last week as I was exploring some trails along the Colorado River in Bastrop, Texas. This is the kind of shot that it would be impossible to capture in my home area, since neither the butterfly nor the cactus is found in the wild in Virginia.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged American Snout, American Snout butterfly, Bastrop Texas, Canon 7D, Libytheana carinenta, Tamron 18-400mm on November 8, 2022| 2 Comments »
Here are a couple of shots of what I believe are American Snout butterflies (Libytheana carinenta) that I spotted on 2 November in Bastrop, Texas. Although you can’t see the butterfly very well in the first shot, I really like the “artsy” feel of the image. The second shot has a completely different feel to me, perhaps because of the coolness of the green background vice the warmth of the yellow in the first image.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Euptoieta claudia, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Variegated Fritillary, Variegated Fritillary butterfly, Woodbridge VA on October 21, 2022| 8 Comments »
I chased this orange butterfly for quite some time on Wednesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and was delighted when it chose to land on top of a fallen leaf. The warm oranges and browns of the butterfly are a wonderful match for the autumn season and the fallen down leaves that now litter the landscape.
I could not immediately identify the butterfly, but when I got home I was able to determine that it is a Variegated Fritillary butterfly (Euptoieta claudia). My car windshield was covered with frost yesterday morning—autumn is definitely here and I suspect that my insect sightings will be decreasing sharply soon.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Eastern Comma, Eastern Comma butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Polygonia interrogationis, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on October 18, 2022| 11 Comments »
Last Wednesday I spotted this beautiful little Eastern Comma butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It struck me that the butterfly’s colors are a perfect match for this autumn season.
I really like this image. When I posted in on my Facebook page, the word “contrast” keep coming up in the comments of my viewers. Some noted the contrast in colors, while others commented on the contrast in textures. I think that the downward-facing pose of the butterfly and the rather unusual shape of its wings also causes people to pause for a moment as their brains try to process what they are seeing.
Years ago I remember reading a post by a fellow blogger, Lyle Krahn, who used the term “stopping power.” Although he was referring to subjects that you found interesting enough that you would stop to take a photo, I think that it applies equally well to viewers. What makes a photo compelling enough that a viewer will stop and examine it, rather than simply scrolling on to the next posting?
We are constantly inundated with visual images that compete for our attention, but so often they affect us only superficially. It is my challenge as a photographer to capture and/or create images that help you to see the world in a different, deeper way, that prompt you to slow down and experience the beauty that surrounds you.
As noted American photographer Dorothea Lange stated, ““The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged black swallowtail, black swallowtail butterfly, Canon 7D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio polyxenes, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on October 10, 2022| 6 Comments »
Perspective and timing really matter. In the first photo, the Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes) is immediately recognizable as a butterfly. When the butterfly opened its wings wider and I took the second shot, however, I captured an image that forces viewers to pause for a second to process what their eyes are seeing. We are so used to seeing butterflies with wings fully visible that we may not immediately recognize a butterfly when the angle of the shot causes the wings to virtually disappear. The final image is a more “normal” view of the butterfly on a different perch.
I spotted this Black Swallowtail butterfly last Friday as I was wandering about at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Dragonflies were pretty scarce that day, so it was nice to see so many butterflies still flying. That day was nice and warm, but since then our temperatures have been lower than average—it is currently 40 degrees (4 degrees C) as I write this posting at 5:30 in the morning and today’s high is forecast to be about 65 degrees (18 degrees C). Autumn has definitely arrived.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Polygonia interrogationis, question mark, Question Mark butterfly, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on October 9, 2022| 1 Comment »
This past Friday I was delighted to spot this Question Mark butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis) during a visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Although these butterflies are with us the entire year—they overwinter as adults—I do not see them all that often. Question Mark butterflies (and their “cousins,” the Eastern Comma butterflies) hang out mostly in the woods, where their drab coloration helps them to blend in with the bark and the dried leaves of the trees, as you can see in the second photo.
I was particularly happy with the first shot, because it lets you see both the drab outer wing and the gorgeous orange and black of the inner wing. I was shooting with my Tamron 150-600mm, which is sometimes a little soft at the long end of the zoom, but managed to capture a good amount of detail nonetheless.
The butterfly’s warm orange coloration seems to be a perfect match for the season, as displays of pumpkins have start to appear.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA on October 1, 2022| 10 Comments »
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.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged black swallowtail, Canon 7D, Danaus plexippus, Eurytides marcellus, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio polyxenes, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA, Zebra Swallowtail on September 15, 2022| 10 Comments »
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.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Hemaris thysbe, Hermaris thysbe, Hummingbird Clearwing Moth, hummingbird moth, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA on September 14, 2022| 5 Comments »
Hummingbird Clearwing Moths (Hemaris thysbe) act a lot like hummingbirds. With rapidly beating wings, they both hover and fly from flower to flower seeking nectar. Instead of a beak like a hummingbird, however, a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth has a long proboscis that rolls out of its coiled tube to reach the nectar deep inside flowers.
Normally when I get shots of a hummingbird moth, its proboscis is fully extended and the moth is sucking up nectar through this flexible hollow tube. On Monday, I was delighted to capture this first image in which the moth’s proboscis was still curled up as it approached a thistle in bloom. The second image shows the Hummingbird Moth actively feeding through the proboscis.
From the first moment when I encountered one, I have been fascinated by these curious creatures. They seem almost magical, combining characteristics of different species, or perhaps mythical, like a centaur or a sphinx. It is always fun to observes a Hummingbird Moth in action, but you have to react quickly to get shots when you see them, because they are really fast and in constant motion.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Limenitis archippus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 18-400mm, Viceroy, Viceroy butterfly, Woodbridge VA on September 7, 2022| 16 Comments »
The sunlight was a bit harsh, but I actually like the way that it turned the background white, drawing even greater attention to the beautiful Viceroy butterfly (Limenitis archippus) that I spotted last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Every now and then I will take a shot, like this one, that turns out more “artsy” and stylized than my “normal” shots. It’s hard to explain, but this simple photo really appeals to me.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, Video, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Danaus plexippus, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, iPhone 11, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio glaucus, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA, YouTube on September 6, 2022| 2 Comments »
Throughout most of the summer I have seen very few large butterflies. Recently, though, I have been seeing them in greater numbers. I do not know if this is somehow linked to the blooming of the thistle plants, but I have spotted numerous butterflies in patches of this plant during recent visits to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Last week I spotted this beautiful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) high atop a plant and I captured the first image with the sky in the background. The second image is linked to a short video I captured yesterday of a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). Most of the time I tend to associate Monarchs with milkweed, but this one sure seemed to be enjoying the thistle flower. Before long, it should begin its migration and perhaps this was part of the fueling process.
I am still experimenting with taking short videos with my iPhone and once again posted the video to YouTube. I have started a little channel on YouTube and have already posted a number of short clips, primarily of butterflies, bison, and butterflies, some of them with music tracks as accompaniment—I inserted some copyright free piano music, for example, in the Monarch video below. I have also experimented with some slightly longer compilations of clips with voiceover narration. Check out my channel Mike Powell if you are at all curious to see and hear what I have done so far.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Nature, Photography, Summer, Video, wildlife, tagged Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Eurytides marcellus, iPhone 11, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio glaucus, Woodbridge VA, YouTube, Zebra Swallowtail, Zebra Swallowtail butterfly on August 31, 2022| 12 Comments »
I am still learning to take videos with my iPhone 11. During my recent road trip, I convinced myself that it could be used with large subjects like bison and wild horses. I wasn’t sure, however, if it could be used effectively with the small subjects that I enjoy photographing.
Yesterday I visited Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, my favorite local wildlife photography spot, and kept my iPhone in my front pants pocket—normally I keep it in my backpack, which it is much less accessible. I was still using my Canon 7D with the Tamron 18-400mm zoom lens most of the time, but I made a conscious effort to look for subjects that I could also film with my iPhone.
I was astonished when I encountered a relatively cooperative Zebra Swallowtail butterfly (Eurytides marcellus). Normally these butterflies are extremely skittish and it is a challenge to get a photo of one, even with a long telephoto lens. How could I make a video of one when I would have to be really close to it?
The first video, which is hosted in YouTube, is a short clip I was able to capture of a Zebra Swallowtail. I added a piano track as accompaniment to enhance the experience.
The second video features an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) feeding on a colorful thistle plant. This video was a bit easier to capture, because the butterfly was perched much higher and was really preoccupied. I was therefore able to frame the video much better. Once again I added piano music to the video, using the copyright free music available in the YouTube Studio.
As I mentioned in a previous posting, I have chosen to embed YouTube links to the videos rather than place them directly in my blog, where they would count against the blog’s data limits. In order to have an image appear for this posting in the Reader section of WordPress, I have reprised an image of a Zebra Swallowtail that was in a May 2022 posting.
I am having fun playing with videos and think they give a slightly different perspective to my normal blog postings. What do you think? Do you enjoy these kinds of short video clips?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Ailanthus Webworm moth, Atalopedes campestris, Atteva aurea, Canon 7D, Fort Belvoir VA, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Sachem Skipper, skipper, Tamron 18-400mm on August 28, 2022| 5 Comments »
Goldenrod was in full bloom on Wednesday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, attracting all kinds of insects, including a little Skipper butterfly and a colorfully-patterned Ailanthus Webworm moth (Atteva aurea). I believe that the butterfly is a Sachem Skipper (Atalopedes campestris), although it is hard to be confident when identifying skipper butterflies—there are quite a number of similar looking species.
I love the intricate orange, black, and white pattern on the body of the Ailanthus Webworm moth, a type of ermine moth. This moth looks quite a bit like a beetle when it is at rest with its wings tucked in, but reportedly it looks like a wasp when in flight. I encourage you to click on the image to get a better look at the wonderful details of the two insects.
When I composed this image, I was conscious of the fact that my primary subject, which was initially the skipper, filled only a small part of the frame. However, I really liked the brilliant yellow of the goldenrod and framed the shot to focus viewers’ attention as much on the sweeping curve and color of the goldenrod as on the insects. The goldenrod became the co-star of the photo and therefore has equal billing in the title of this blog posting.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Danaus plexippus, Limenitis archippus, milkweed, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Pearl Crescent, pearl crescent butterfly, Phyciodes tharos, Tamron 18-400mm, Viceroy, Viceroy butterfly, Woodbridge VA on August 18, 2022| 8 Comments »
Tuesday was a wonderful day for butterflies at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and I was delighted to see lots of them, including the three orange varieties that I am featuring today. First up is a pretty Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). Although its wings show some damage, it was happily feeding on some milkweed. Recent reports have shown that Monarchs are endangered, so it is always exciting to spot one.
The next photo shows a Viceroy butterfly (Limenitis archippus), which is visually quite similar to the Monarch. As I have noted before, the biggest distinguishing feature to tell the two species apart is the line on the hind wing of the Viceroys that Monarchs do not have.
The final orange butterfly is the much smaller Pearl Crescent butterfly (Phyciodes tharos). I see Pearl Crescent butterflies much more often than its larger counterparts, but they are usually quite skittish and perch so close to the ground that it is a challenge to photograph them.
Many of you know that I really like the color orange. I frequently wear a pair of orange Converse All-star sneakers and drive the orange KIA Soul that made a guest appearance in a recent blog post. For me, the color is warm and comfortable. Although it is often associated with the autumn, orange is very much a summer color too, as you can easily see in these butterfly photos.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Music, Nature, Photography, Travel, wildlife, tagged Anise Swallowtail, Arctic Fritillary, Boloria chariclea, Canon 7D, Edith's Checkerspot, Euphydryas editha, Mount Rainier, Mt Rainier National Park, Papilio zelicaon, Tamron 18-400mm on August 7, 2022| 12 Comments »
Here are some shots of butterflies that I spotted yesterday while hiking in Mt Rainier National Park. All three were photographed at over 6000 feet altitude (1829 m), flying among the wildflowers and other vegetation.
I think they are an Anise Swallowtail (Papilio zelicaon), an Edith’s Checkerspot (Euphydryas editha), and an Arctic Fritillary (Boloria chariclea), none of which I had seen previously. As I have mentioned before, I am not very familiar with Western species, so I therefore welcome corrections if I have identified these butterflies.
Today is my last full day in Washington State—I will begin my long drive back to the East Coast tomorrow and my blog posting schedule will almost certainly will be sporadic during this coming week. With a little luck, I’ll be able to capture some images along the way that I can share with you when I am finally home in a week or so.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Aeshna palmata, Canon 7D, Green Comma, Limenitis lorquini, Lorquin's Admiral, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, Paddle-tailed Darner, Polygonia faunus, Tamron 18-400mm on August 4, 2022| 8 Comments »
It should not come as a surprise to readers of this blog that I kept my eyes open for insects as I hiked about in Mount Rainier National Park earlier this week. The pickings were pretty slim, despite the fact that I passed through a variety of habitats.
At one particular stream, I noted some dragonfly activity, with multiple large dragonflies patrolling over the water, endlessly zooming back and forth. I hoped in vain that one would land, but eventually settled for trying capture a shot of them as they flew by. I was thrilled to actually succeed with one shot, which I think might be a Paddle-tailed Darner dragonfly (Aeshna palmata).
While I was chasing the dragonflies, I came upon the distinctive butterfly in the second photo. I believe that it is a Lorquin’s Admiral (Limenitis lorquini), as species that is new to me.
The final photo features some kind of Comma butterfly. The Pacific Northwest has different varieties of Comma butterflies than I am used to seeing in Virginia. I think this one might be a Green Comma (Polygonia faunus).
One of the real joys of traveling is having the chance to see new species and I am happy that this trip is providing me with such opportunities. If you happen to be an expert on any of these species and notice that I have misidentified them, please do not feel shy about providing a correction.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, Travel, wildlife, tagged Asclepias tuberosa, Butterfly Weed, Canon 50D, Fort Belvoir VA, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Pearl Crescent, pearl crescent butterfly, Phyciodes tharos, Tamron 180mm on July 25, 2022| 16 Comments »
Normally I try to do a posting to my blog every day, but for the next three weeks my posting schedule will be much more erratic. I am in the final stages of packing my car for a trip to visit my son and his family outside of Seattle, Washington. There are multiple decision points along the way and I have not yet decided on my final route, but no matter how I go, it is likely to be about 3,000 miles (4828 km) each way.
I have some camping gear with me, including a water jug that holds six gallon (23 liter), so I may well be spending some time disconnected from the virtual world. I’ll try to take some photos along the way and will share them when I am able.
I am leaving you with a shot of a pretty little butterfly, which I think is a Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) perched on some Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa). I love the different shades of orange in the image.
In case some of you do not know it, my KIA Soul, in which I am driving out West, is orange in color. It is a coppery orange and not a pumpkin orange and it definitely stands out in a parking lot. My license plate holder has SOUL on it and my license plate itself is “BLESS MY.”
I am attaching a couple of photos of my car from January 2016, after a big snow storm. So many of us throughout the Northern Hemisphere are suffering from oppressive heat and I thought that the sight of snow might cool us off a little. I’ll close with a joke that I say on-line today that is a perfect fit for my quirky sense of humor—”Just be thankful that it is not snowing. Imagine shoveling snow in this heat!”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Danaus plexippus, Limenitis archippus, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 18-400mm, Viceroy butterfly, Woodbridge VA on July 25, 2022| 5 Comments »
I have not seen very many Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) this summer, though I did spot a similar-looking Viceroy butterfly (Limenitis archippus) on Tuesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Monarchs were in the news last week. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, “The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a Switzerland-based conservation organization that monitors the status of wildlife, added migratory monarchs (Danaus plexippus plexippus) to its list of threatened species this week.”
I decided to include an image of a Monarch that I captured earlier this month as it was feeding on a cone flower. I thought I would have more chances to photograph more monarchs, but this one was the only one that I have seen in July.
How do you tell the two species apart? The main visual difference between the two species is the black line across the Viceroy’s hind wings, which Monarch butterflies do not have. Both are stunningly beautiful.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 7D, Eurytides marcellus, kaleidoscope, kaleidoscope of butterflies, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio troilus, Spicebush Swallowtail, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA, Zebra Swallowtail on July 24, 2022| 11 Comments »
I was delighted to encounter this group of butterflies last Tuesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Several Zebra Swallowtails (Eurytides marcellus) and one prominent Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) were poking among the rocks, drinking in salts and other nutrients. If you look carefully at the image, you will see that one of the Zebra Swallowtails (the one to the right of the Spicebush Swallowtail flying—apparently it wanted to join the party.
Did you know that one of the collective nouns for a group of butterflies is “kaleidoscope?” I think the word is a a perfect descriptor for these multi-colored swirling beauties.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged black swallowtail, black swallowtail butterfly, Canon 7D, Eurytides marcellus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Papilio polyxenes, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA, Zebra Swallowtail, Zebra Swallowtail butterfly on July 16, 2022| 6 Comments »
It was hot and humid when I went trekking with my camera this past Wednesday and most of the wildlife seemed to be taking siestas in the shade at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I could hear the sounds of birds, but spotted only a few of them. Even the dragonfly activity seemed to be lower than normal.
Fortunately, a good number of butterflies were active. In fact they were so active, that I expended a lot of energy chasing after them. I noticed that several of them were showing some wear and tear, with visible damage to their wings.
The first and third photos show Black Swallowtail butterflies (Papilio polyxenes), while the butterfly in the middle shot is a Zebra Swallowtail butterfly (Eurytides marcellus). None of these images is spectacular, but I like the way that they work together as a set, with the green vegetation in the background of each of them serving as a unifying element.
Have a happy weekend and chase a few butterflies if you can find them—it will make you feel like a child again.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Cabbage White, Cabbage White butterfly, Canon 50D, green spring gardens, Pieris rapae, Tamron 180mm on July 12, 2022| 4 Comments »
I love the simple beauty of Cabbage White butterflies (Pieris rapae). They are mostly white with a few touches of black, but if you get a close-up look, you discover that they have stunningly speckled green eyes. Cabbage Whites, in my experience, tend to be pretty skittish and do not stay in one place for very long. If you were to track my movements, you would probably discover that I spend a good amount of time chasing after these little beauties.
Last Friday I was able to capture these images of a Cabbage White butterfly as it flitted about some pretty purple flowers at Green Spring Gardens. The first shot is my clear favorite of the three thanks to its saturated colors, out-of-focus background, and interesting composition. The other two images, however, are interesting in their own ways, showing a more dynamic view of the butterfly at work.
I am not a gardener, so I tend to view this butterfly almost exclusively from the perspective of its beauty—the same is true with invasive species of animals and insects. I fully recognize that this butterfly is considered to be an agricultural pest and can cause damage to crops, but that, in my eyes, does not diminish its beauty.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on May 29, 2022| 5 Comments »
I was a bit surprised and absolutely delighted to see my first Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) of the year yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I love to see these colorful butterflies, but each year it is a bit of a hit-or-miss proposition, as habitats for Monarchs continue to be threatened and their numbers seem to be declining.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Epargyreus clarus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Silver-spotted Skipper, Silver-spotted Skipper butterfly, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on May 21, 2022| 2 Comments »
Although I enjoy photographing large, colorful butterflies, like the Zebra Swallowtail that I featured in a recent posting, I also love to photograph smaller, more nondescript butterflies. I spotted this pretty little Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) during a visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and chased it about as it gathered nectar from several early spring wildflowers.
There are over 3500 species of skipper butterflies worldwide, according to Wikipedia, and the Silver-spotted Skipper is one of the few that I can reliably identify. Many of the others that I see are so similar in appearance that I have to pore over identification guides to try to figure out what kind they are. Often I end up guessing and am wrong just about as often as I am right in identifying a skipper.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eastern Comma, Eastern Comma butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Polygonia comma, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on May 19, 2022| 6 Comments »
I was thrilled to capture this image of an Eastern Comma butterfly (Polygonia comma) during a recent visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. When its wings are closed, this butterfly blends right in with the bark of the trees on which it frequently perches, so it was nice that it chose to perch on some green leaves.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eurytides marcellus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA, Zebra Swallowtail, Zebra Swallowtail butterfly on May 17, 2022| 9 Comments »
Zebra Swallowtail butterflies (Eurytides marcellus) are amazingly skittish. They fly all about, approaching plants as though they were planning to land and then change course at the last moment. I was thrilled during a recent trip to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge when this beautiful Zebra Swallowtail landed on a small wildflower and stayed still long enough for me to lower my monopod and focus on it.
I was shooting at the extreme end of my long telephoto zoom lens and was not sure if I could capture the fine details of the butterfly—the lens is supposedly soft at 600 mm. I was delighted when I saw my shots on my computer to see that I had managed to capture the beautiful red markings that really pop amid the zebra stripes pop on this swallowtail. Even the long antennae and the “tails” of the butterfly are pretty sharp.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Portraits, spring, wildlife, tagged black swallowtail, black swallowtail butterfly, Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on April 29, 2022| 6 Comments »
I was delighted yesterday to spot this beautiful Black Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio polyxenes) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, the first one that I have seen this season. At this time of the year I am always struck by the pristine look of the newly emerged butterflies—later in the season they will become tattered and faded.
In my area we have four different black swallowtails—the Black Swallowtail, the Spicebush Swallowtail, the Pipevine Swallowtail, and the dark morph female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. Sometimes it can be difficult to distinguish between the species, but in this case it was really easy. Male and female Black Swallowtails can be identified by the black dot inside the orange dot in the middle of the bottom of the hind wings, as you can see in this photo. Several years ago I came across a wonderful posting by the Louisiana Naturalist that has side-by-side comparisons of these four species and tips on how to tell them apart.
Last Friday, Jet Eliot, a wonderful writer and blogger who lives on the West Coast, wrote a fascinating blog posting entitled Swallowtail Butterflies that looked at some of the swallowtails in her area as well as others that she has encountered during her worldwide travels. The photos in the posting by Athena Alexander are astounding and Jet’s prose is informative and inspiring. I encourage you to check out the posting and leave you with this wonderful snippet from Jet—”I am often buoyed by these dancing kaleidoscopic creatures who start out so immobile and teensy and dark, and as each day turns to the next, they somehow know what to do. Soon they have mysteriously blossomed into delicate splendor.”
Have a wonderful weekend.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Cabbage White, Cabbage White butterfly, Canon 50D, Cupido comyntas, Eastern Tailed-blue, Eastern Tailed-blue butterfly, Lorton VA, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Occoquan Regional Park, Pieris rapae, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on April 25, 2022| 6 Comments »
Quite often the simplest of subjects can be incredibly beautiful, like these little white butterflies that I photographed last week. Many folks might dismiss these nondescript creatures as moths or simply ignore them. It really is worthwhile to slow down and look at them closely.
The butterfly in the first photo is a Cabbage White (Pieris rapae) that was feeding on a patch of what I believe is purple dead nettle. Although it looks like a macro shot, I captured the image at the 600mm end of my telephoto zoom lens.
I took the next two pictures with an actual macro lens, my trusty Tamron 180mm lens. The tiny Eastern Tailed-Blue butterfly (Cupido comyntas) has a wingspan of about an inch (25 mm) and I was thrilled to capture so much detail of its beauty, including the little “tails.”
Beauty is everywhere.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged bluet, Can on 50D, dark morph, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, Houstonia caerulea, Papilio glaucus, Prince William County VA, Quaker Ladies, Tamron 180mm on April 19, 2022| 5 Comments »
Recently I did a posting that featured Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterflies (Papilio glaucus)—see Swallowtails in the forest. None of those butterflies seemed to be involved in searching for nectar and seemed content to take in minerals and water.
Last Friday I returned to that same location in Prince William County, Virginia and discovered that the butterflies were taking advantage of the few small flowers that were blooming. In the first photo, an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail was nectaring on the small bluets (Houstonia caerulea) that are sometimes referred to as Quaker Ladies. The butterfly was so low to the ground that it looked like it was dragging its “tails.”
The butterfly in the second image is a dark morph Eastern Tiger Swallowtail female. Females of this species are dimorphic—there is a yellow variant that looks like the one in the first photo and a dark variant that looks like the one in the second image. The dark morph female was almost flat on the ground as she gathered nectar from a very short dandelion.
As more flowers begin to bloom, I am sure these butterflies will have a better selection of sources of nourishment, but the early arrivers have to make do with a really limited menu of choices.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, Papilio glaucus, Prince William County VA, Tamron 180mm on April 15, 2022| 11 Comments »
On Monday I saw a surprisingly large number of Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterflies (Papilio glaucus) as I explored a stream in Prince William County, Virginia. I used to associate these butterflies with gardens, because that is where I had previously seen them most of the time. Over the past years, though, as I have searched for early spring dragonflies, I have gotten used to seeing these colorful butterflies alongside the streams, often congregating in groups to drink and extract minerals from puddles (see my blog post from last year called A kaleidoscope of butterflies for more information and a photo of this phenomenon).
These swallowtails seemed content to fly about continuously, searching and exploring, but rarely perching. When they did come to the ground, they often landed in patches of fallen leaves, as you can see in the second and third images. I was happy when one of the butterflies opted to perch on a fern, which made it a little easier for me to photograph it.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Nature, Photography, spring, turtle, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Claytonia virginica, Clemmys guttata, Eastern Comma, Polygonia comma, Prince William County VA, Spotted Turtle, Spring Beauty, Tamron 180mm, Virginia Spring Beauty on March 25, 2022| 10 Comments »
I note the transition to spring in small ways, quite often in the reappearance of familiar species of plants, insects, and other living creatures. I was delighted on Monday to discover that tiny Virginia Spring Beauty wildflowers (Claytonia virginica) have already started to push their way up from the forest floor in Prince William County. According to Wikipedia, the individual flowers bloom for three days, although the five stamens on each flower are only active for a single day.
On the same day, I spotted an Eastern Comma butterfly (Polygonia comma), the first full-sized butterfly that I have been able to photograph this year. I was not able to get very close to the butterfly, but you can see the beautiful orange pattern of its inner wings in the middle shot below.
The final image shows a Spotted Turtle (Clemmys guttata) that I spotted last week. This species seems to be found only in shallow marshy areas and I rarely encounter one, so it was exciting to be able to photograph it.
We all celebrate different signs of spring at this time of the year (or of autumn if you live in the Southern Hemisphere). What indications do you look for that signal the change of the season?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Celastrina ladon, Prince William County VA, Spring Azure, Spring Azure butterfly, Tamron 180mm on March 24, 2022| 20 Comments »
I was happy on Monday to photograph my first butterfly of the year, which appears to be the appropriately named Spring Azure butterfly (Celastrina ladon). Earlier this season I have spotted several Mourning Cloak butterflies, but was not able to get a shot of any of them.
The Spring Azure butterfly is only about an inch (25 mm) in size, but has some wonderful details that I was able to capture. It is fairly nondescript in color until it opens its wings and reveals a beautiful shade of blue—you get a small glimpse of that wonderful blue in the second image.
I had to pursue this butterfly for quite a while before it finally landed. An outside observer might have have wondered what it the world I was doing, but chasing butterflies always makes me feel like a child again.
It won’t be long before I see much bigger and more colorful butterflies, but this one is special to me as the first butterfly of the spring that I was able to photograph.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 