Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Argiope aurantia, Black and Yellow Garden Orbweaver spider, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, spider, Tamron 180mm macro lens, Yellow Garden Orbweaver spider on September 5, 2013| 11 Comments »
Finally I am starting to see some of the Yellow Garden Orbweaver spiders (Argiope aurantia) that fascinated me so much last summer. These spiders are big and colorful and have awesome webs with a distinctive zigzag section. I will be keeping an eye on the spiders to see if I can observe them catching prey and wrapping it up in silk.
Stay tuned for more spiders., most likely coming pretty soon to the blog—this spider is just the first fall installment.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Humor, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Sports, tagged Acronicta oblinita, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, caterpillar, Huntley Meadows Park, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers, Smartweed caterpillar, Tamron 180mm macro lens on September 5, 2013| 10 Comments »
This past weekend I came across a type of caterpillar that I first encountered last fall. Its black, yellow, and white markings once again made me think of the Pittsburgh Steelers National Footbal League team that wears those same colors.
The sports pages of the newspaper currently are saturated with articles on football, so it’s only natural that I think in those terms (and I apologize to the rest of the world for any confusion caused by the fact that we Americans use the word “football” to refer to a game that doesn’t use feet much at all and use “soccer” to refer to the other “football” game).
I enjoy referring to this caterpillar as the Steelers caterpillar, though, of course, it has a “real” name, which I think is a Smartweed caterpillar (Acronicta oblinita). Some US states have state insects, so I wonder if the Steelers would welcome a fuzzy new mascot. This could be the start of a trend and a marketing opportunity—there are more than enough caterpillar types around for each team to adopt its own.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Amphibians, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Green Treefrog, Huntley Meadows Park, Hyla cinerea, tree frog on September 4, 2013| 10 Comments »
Unlike most of the tree frogs that I have encountered, this Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea) was alert and moved about a bit when I tried to take its photo—the others were resting motionless on cattail plants and seemed half-asleep.
The frog initially hid behind the cattail leaf and then tentatively poked its head out, giving me the chance to get this shot. I really like the pose that I was able to capture and the really cool details that you can see of the pads on its toes, which help it to seemingly defy gravity. (Click on the image to see a higher resolution view.)
I too would love to be able to defy gravity.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria, Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 180mm macro lens, wingspan on September 1, 2013| 8 Comments »
Coming in for a landing, this Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) stretched out his wings to their full extent and the sight was mighty impressive. The wings stretched out so wide, in fact, that I couldn’t fit them entirely into the frame. As he reached the ground, the heron gradually pulled in his wings and I was able to get a couple of additional shots of the impressive wingspan.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Amphibians, Art, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, frog, green frog, Green Treefrog, Huntley Meadows Park, Hyla cinerea, Tamron 180mm macro lens on September 1, 2013| 8 Comments »
This small Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea) was swaying in the breeze, mostly obscured by the heavy growth in the marsh, when I first spotted it. I searched for an opening to get an unobstructed shot and finally found one, looking through a circularly bent dried leaf.
The different elements of the scene, however, were all in motion at different speeds. I felt like I was playing a carnival game as I tried to aim and shoot at a target that would appear and disappear from view. Eventually I got a shot that was pretty close to the mental image that was my target and the frog was framed.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Humor, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Promachus rufipes, Red-footed Cannibalfly, robber fly, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 31, 2013| 39 Comments »
If you were an insect or even a hummingbird, you would definitely not want to encounter this large insect with the macabre moniker of Red-footed Cannibalfly (Promachus rufipes), also known as the Bee Panther.
This insect is considered to be a giant robber fly. Robber flies in general are predators that wait for their prey to fly by and then attack it. Wikipedia describes the attack in this way, “The fly attacks its prey by stabbing it with its short, strong proboscis injecting the victim with saliva containing neurotoxic and proteolytic enzymes which very rapidly paralyze the victim and soon digest the insides; the fly then sucks the liquefied material through the proboscis.”
It’s hard to believe that a fly could actually take down a hummingbird, but bugguide, which I have found to be a good reference for insects, notes that there have been reports of a Red-footed Cannibalfly attacking a Ruby-throated Hummingbird.
When I first saw this insect fly by, I thought it was some strange kind of hairy dragonfly, but the more that I looked at it, the more I realized that it was not a dragonfly—the eyes and wings were all wrong. I have spotted several of these flies already, but so far have not seen any with captured prey.
I came across a wonderful commentary on these insects in a blog called Ohio Birds and Biodiversity that sums up my feelings about them—”Be thankful these insects aren’t the size of Sandhill Cranes.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, close-up, grasshopper, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 30, 2013| 7 Comments »
My goal for this photo was pretty simple—move slowly toward this grasshopper and get a good close-up shot. I think that I achieved my goal. I love shooting with my macro lens.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Art, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, blue heron, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron, Huntley Meadows Park, relfections, silhouettes, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 30, 2013| 10 Comments »
Without fill-in light, a backlit subject is often in the shadows and becomes a silhouette, which is what happened in these shots of a Great Blue Heron taking off from a watery area of my local marshland park. The same sunlight in front of me also created beautiful reflections of the heron in the water, and I really like the combination of the silhouettes and reflections in these images.
This heron was getting ready to give chase to another blue heron and was squawking loudly as it took off. I watched the two herons for quite a while and this one went out of his ways several times to harass the other one and force it to search for prey in the vegetation away from the pool of water. As you can see in the second and third photos, a Great Egret was a spectator to the action, lifting up its head to observe what was going on. When things calmed down, the egret returned to its fishing until the next round of activity from the herons.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Gardening, Insects, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, cardinal flower, Huntley Meadows Park, Lobelia cardinalis, swallowtail butterfly, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 29, 2013| 7 Comments »
I love the look of this black-colored swallowtail butterfly feeding on a cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) in the marsh—I just wish that I could identify the butterfly with greater certainty.
I used to think that there were only a few varieties of black-colored swallowtails, but as I learn about more species, I get more confused when trying to identify them. Most of the time I think that this is a Pipevine Swallowtail, but at other moments I convince myself that this is a Spicebush Swallowtail or even a Black Swallowtail. Whatever species it is, this butterfly kept its wings flapping pretty quickly as it was feeding, which accounts for the motion blur in the wings.
I really like the color and shape of the cardinal flower and wanted to show some of the buds and petals, so I decided not to crop the shot any tighter. I was a little surprised to find this butterfly on the cardinal flower, because I read in one document on the internet that these flowers are pollinated almost exclusively by hummingbirds.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Handsome Meadow Katydid, Hibiscus moscheutos, Huntley Meadows Park, katydid, mallow, Orchelimum pulchellum, Swamp Rose Mallow, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 29, 2013| 7 Comments »
Looking into a Swamp Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos), I immediately noticed the distinctive colors of a Handsome Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum pulchellum), feeding on the center stalk of the flower.
The katydid did not move from its position and merely cocked its head a little to the side and glanced up at me with its striking blue eyes. It seemed to be a little irritated to be disturbed, though I must confess that it’s really hard to gauge the emotions of an insect from its expressions.
The Handsome Meadow Katydid is one of my favorite insects and, in my humble opinion, truly deserves its name. In addition to its rainbow coloration and distinctive eyes, it has the cutest little feet and toes.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Gardening, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, backlighting, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Limenitis archippus, Tamron 180mm macro lens, Viceroy butterfly on August 28, 2013| 6 Comments »
I love backlit subjects, especially when the light shines through from behind and provides a stained glass effect, as was the case with this Viceroy butterfly (Limenitis archippus).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, Huntley Meadows Park, laughing, Sigma 135-400mm telephoto zoom lens, turtles on August 28, 2013| 12 Comments »
Do Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) have a sense of humor? What would prompt one to burst out in laughter?
Maybe one of the many turtles surrounding the heron’s feet decided to tickle them. (Click on the photo to get a better look at the turtles).
Perhaps he is preparing for an audition for the reality television show America’s Got Talent. What’s his talent? Judging from his appearance, I’d say this heron might have a future as a stand-up comic. I might have captured hims as he was trying out new material on the turtles, which are notoriously tough as judges—you have to be really funny to be able to penetrate those thick shells.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, Humor, Insects, Landscape, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, canon 50, Common Whitetail dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, odd couple, Plathemis lydia, sunbathing, Tamron 180mm macro lens, turtle on August 27, 2013| 25 Comments »
It’s hard to imagine an odder couple than this dragonfly and this turtle, sunbathing together on a log in the beaver pond. What do they see in each other? How do they communicate? Love seems to find a way to overcome obstacles like these.
One thing is clear—they are happy together, sharing this special moment in the warmth of the sun. If you don’t believe me, check out the smile on the turtle’s face.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Blue Dasher, Blue Dasher dragonfly, Canon 50D, dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, Pachydiplax longipennis, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 27, 2013| 8 Comments »
Most dragonflies choose perches high in the air, but this male Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) decided to land on a little plant just inches above the surface of the water at my local marsh, creating a photographic challenge for me.
Hanging over the edge of the boardwalk, I tried to get at eye level with the dragonfly and simultaneously sought an uncluttered background. In the first image, I was successful in shapes of the leafs, achieving a kind of three-dimensional effect. The water turned into an almost even gray, totally lacking in details. The second image gives you a better sense of the context, with the ghostly plants in the background.
The Blue Dasher dragonfly is the most common one that I see and it’s always a challenge to come up with creative new ways to show off its beauty. For this one day, I feel like I successfully met that challenge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Art, Landscape, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged abstract, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, leaf, rain, raindrops, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 26, 2013| 16 Comments »
When drops of rain bead up on the surface of a leaf, the effect is magical—a world of crystal orbs is created. Most of the time the drops appear almost solid, reflecting back the light.
From certain angles, though, the raindrops serve as lenses, offering us a miniature view of the world. Within the drops, the inner world and the world beyond come together and create a beautiful effect.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, famly Tetragnathidae, Huntley Meadows Park, Long-jawed Orb Weaver spider, spiders, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 25, 2013| 7 Comments »
I seem to be seeing spiders everywhere recently, so I thought I’d feature photos of three of them to represent the wide diversity of the population that I have observed.
The first one was very small and appeared to be hiding at the bottom of this leaf, waiting for its prey to come along. It did not appear to have made a web.
The second one had a web suspended over the water and is, I believe, a kind of long-jawed orb weaver of the Tetragnathidae family. It has awfully long legs compared to most other spiders. I usually see them making webs late in the day as the sun is beginning to go down.
The final one is a kind of spider that I see pretty regularly, though I don’t know what kind it is. It appears to have captured some prey, perhaps a grasshopper.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Bugs, Flowers, Gardening, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria, bug, Canon 50D, Dusky Stink Bug, Huntley Meadows Park, stink bug, Tamron 180mm macro lens, VA on August 24, 2013| 9 Comments »
I probably should have come up with a more creative title for this posting than the name of the featured insect. I mean, really, how many readers will be enticed to read a posting about a Dusky Stink Bug (Euschistus tristigmus)? I word “stink” is enough to turn off some people.
Stink bugs are pretty much all shaped the same, but they come in different colors and patterns, many of which are similar, so identification is not always easy. In this case, for example, I had to determine if the shoulders were rounded or pointed to distinguish between two brown stink bugs—they look pointed to me.
The stink bug was hanging upside down, feeding on a plant that I can’t identify, when I encountered him. He seemed to be feeding, although I never did get a look at his face in order to verify my assumption. The upside down perspective is a little odd and I thought about rotating the image, but ultimately decided to leave it with its original orientation.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, blue heron, Canon 50D, Canon 55-250mm zoom lens, Great Blue Heron, heron, Huntley Meadows Park, rain on August 24, 2013| 7 Comments »
When it started to rain yesterday, I pulled out my umbrella and kept shooting for a while, permitting me to get this close-up shot of a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias).
The heron was stoically enduring the rainfall, as drops of water began to bead up on its shoulders. The wind started to kick up a little too, ruffling some of the feathers on the heron’s chest. I was afraid that my white and green umbrella would spook the heron, but I was able to get pretty close to the heron to get this shot at the far end of my 55-250mm zoom lens. If you click on the photo, you can see these (and other) details in a higher resolution image.
There are many flowers blooming in my local marshland park right now and I really like the little splashes of yellow in the background of this image.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, birds in flight, blue heron, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron, Huntley Meadows Park, takeoff, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 24, 2013| 19 Comments »
Have you ever seen a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) attempt to do a vertical takeoff from the water? Most of the time, blue herons gain altitude with a few thrusts of their powerful wings as they move forward into the air.
This heron, however, looked like he was initially trying to levitate straight up into the air, like a Harrier jet, a jet that is capable of taking off vertically. It looked like the heron could not perform a normal takeoff because his feet were tangled in the weeds at the bottom of the little pond. Before he could take off, he had to untangle his feet and his initial upward wing movements were intended to accomplish that task. Only then was he cleared for takeoff.
You’ll probably noted that I posted the images in reverse chronological order, so if you want to follow the takeoff process, you should start at the bottom. The first two images are more impressive as photographs, because I was able to capture the heron in the air, with the wings in interesting positions, despite the fact that I was using “only” a 180mm lens. (Some of the bird photographers that I encounter have 500mm or longer lenses.) The last two images are interesting and a little whimsical, because of the heron’s actions and the angle at which we are viewing the heron. Did you notice how skinny his face and neck look when shot from a head-on position?
Click on the image for a higher-resolution view.
Before you can take off, you have to untangle your feet.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in animals, Humor, Music, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, muskrat, Muskrat Love, Ondatra zibethicus, Tamron 180mm macro lens on August 22, 2013| 12 Comments »
Growing up in the suburbs of Boston, I was never exposed to muskrats and my first impression of them may well have come from the Captain and Tennille version of the song “Muskrat Love.” So every time I see one now, that song comes into my head and I think of Muskrat Susie and Muskrat Sam doing the jitterbug out in muskrat land.
This past Monday I came upon this little muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) at my local marsh as I was trying to get some shots of a Green Heron. I was on the boardwalk, maybe 18 inches (about 45 cm) or so above the level of the land and the muskrat was close enough that I was able to get this shot with my 180mm macro lens. Once it became aware of our presence, the muskrat slipped into the water and swam away, perhaps returning to Muskrat Susie.
One interesting note about “Muskrat Love” is that the Captain and Tennille chose to sing that song at the White House in 1976 at a bicentennial dinner that included Queen Elizabeth as a guest, according to Wikipedia. If you have never heard the song (or if you want to relive memories of your childhood), here’s a link to a YouTube version. In the introduction to the song, Toni Tennille describes an impassive Henry Kissinger during the performance at the White House (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBYV_7a0FQs).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in animals, Music, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Drifters, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 180mm macro lens, under the boardwalk on August 21, 2013| 8 Comments »
As the light was starting to fade this past Monday, I made one final trip along the boardwalk at my local marshland park and suddenly heard some loud chewing sounds coming from the cattails. Although I couldn’t immediately locate the source of the noise, I suspected that one or more of the beavers was out and about.
Slowly I crept forward until finally I caught sight of a North American Beaver (Castor canadensis), vigorously chewing on cattail stalks. My camera was already attached to my tripod, which was a good thing, because the shutter speed was pretty slow, even when I cranked up the ISO. I didn’t have a really clear line of sight to the beaver and the best that I could manage was the second shot below.
After a short while, some other folks came walking by on the boardwalk and spooked the beaver. The beaver stopped what it was doing, grabbed a piece of a stalk in its mouth, and began to swim in my direction. I did not have much time to react, because there was not much distance between the beaver and me.
The third image shows the beaver as it was headed toward me. I decided not to crop the photo to give you an idea of how close I actually was to the beaver. I was shooting with my Tamron 180mm macro lens for these shots, so I had a moderate amount of telephoto capability.
The first image, which is also uncropped, shows my final view of the beaver before it dove and swam away under the boardwalk. Those of us of a certain generation can’t help but think of the Drifters’ song when we hear those words “under the boardwalk,” sparking memories of the days of summers past.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, grasshopper, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 180mm macro lens, texture on August 19, 2013| 5 Comments »
Until I got a really close-up shot, I never realized that the body of a grasshopper had so many amazing textures. Previously, I had naively assumed that the body parts were relatively smooth. Click on the image to see a higher-resolution view of the details of the “shoulders,” legs, wings, and antennae.
I hope that no one opened this posting thinking that it was a culinary one. I’ve never tasted a grasshopper, but assume that it would have a crunchy texture. Who knows, maybe it tastes like chicken, which seems to be the default flavor for exotic animal protein sources.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Art, Dragonflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Blue Dasher, Blue Dasher dragonfly, Canon 50D, dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, Pachydiplax longipennis, Sigma 135 on August 18, 2013| 16 Comments »
As I noted in an earlier posting today, some of my favorite images are almost minimalist in their approach. This recent image of a male Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) fits into that category.
Once again, the composition is simple, the color palette is fairly limited, and there is a good amount of negative space. The brown-colored background is the water in one of the areas of my local marshland park.
I like the position of the dragonfly—I think he was trying to cool off on a hot day by raising his abdomen—and the viewer’s eyes are drawn to the dragonfly, because it is the most colorful and the most sharply-focused object in the photo.
This image reminds me a little of a painting in which the artist has arranged the elements to make a pleasing composition. In this case, though, nature did the arranging.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Art, Dragonflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Common Whitetail, Common Whitetail dragonfly, dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, Plathemis lydia, Sigma 135-400mm telephoto zoom lens on August 18, 2013| 7 Comments »
Some of my favorite images are almost minimalist in their approach, like this shot of a male Common Whitetail dragonfly (Plathemis lydia).
The composition is simple, the color palette is limited, and there is a pretty good amount of negative space. The subject is not unique and unusual—its name even indicates that it is “common.”
I managed to capture some of the details of the dragonfly, though, like the “hairs” on the legs (click on the image to see a higher resolution view), though the image is not super sharp. The shadow of the wings on the green leaf adds an additional touch of visual interest to the image.
The photo is not spectacular and showy, but I find a real beauty in its quiet simplicity.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea alba, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Canon 55-250mm zoom lens, egret, Great Egret, Huntley Meadows Park on August 16, 2013| 13 Comments »
I am in awe of photographers who can capture amazing shots of birds in flight and I continue my quest to improve my own skills. So many things have to come together to get such shots including the timing, location, lighting, and focusing.
Here is one of my most recent efforts, a shot of a Great Egret (Ardea alba) in flight. The focus is a little soft, but I really like the position of the egret that I managed to capture, with a beautiful sweep of the wings.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Blue Dasher, Blue Dasher dragonfly, Canon 50D, Canon 55-250mm zoom lens, dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, Pachydiplax longipennis on August 16, 2013| 4 Comments »
One of the many reasons why I love dragonflies is their amazing wings, which are so delicate and yet so powerful, like those of this male Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis). In this shot, I tried to capture some of the intricate detail of the structure of the wings of the dragonfly. They remind me a bit of the leaded glass windows that I sometimes see in old homes, with each small piece of glass outlined in black.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Amphibians, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, camouflage, Canon 50D, frog, Huntley Meadows Park, Sigma 135-400mm telephoto zoom lens on August 15, 2013| 7 Comments »
Usually it is hard for me to find frogs, because they blend in so well with their surroundings, but that certainly was not the case with this bright green frog. Doesn’t he realize how much he stands out in that environment? I was able to spot him from quite a distance away.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Dragonflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Blue Dasher, Blue Dasher dragonfly, Canon 50D, dragonflies, Huntley Meadows Park, mating, mating dragonflies, Pachydiplax longipennis, Tamron 180mm macro on August 15, 2013| 6 Comments »
When I first caught sight of this male Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) in the air, I thought that he had captured some sort of prey. I was wrong, yet I was also right.
The male dragonfly’s prey was a female dragonfly and they were in a mating position that I later learned is known as the wheel. The sheer flexibility and athleticism involved seems worthy of the Cirque de Soleil. Apparently it starts when the male grabs the female’s head with special claspers at the tip of his abdomen.
I came across a fascinating article by Jennifer Ackerman in National Geographic Magazine entitled Dragonflies Strange Love that provides some amazing insights into the mating habits of dragonflies. One sentence really sums up the process, “Grab, shake, bite, puncture, punch—that’s just the courtship ritual of these dazzling aerobats.”
The male dragonfly seems to be driven by an incredibly strong biological drive. I can almost hear one of them repeating the words of the Tina Turner song, “What’s love got to do with it?”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Humor, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Asclepias incarnata, bee, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, milkweed, swamp milkweed, Tamron 180mm macro on August 14, 2013| 9 Comments »
This bee might argue that it’s just the camera angle, but my initial impression of this bee was that he looked chubby—I don’t think that I have ever encountered a bee with such a round face. He reminds me of a sumo wrestler at the start of a match.
The bee pretty much ignored me, though, and seemed to really get into his work, literally, gathering pollen from some kind of milkweed plant, perhaps swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, caterpillar, Huntley Meadows Park, Saddleback caterpillar, Sibine stimulea, Tamron 180mm macro on August 13, 2013| 12 Comments »
It was just starting to rain when some fellow photographers and I encountered a very strange-looking caterpillar. I couldn’t believe my eyes and was immediately reminded of the dogs in my neighborhood that sometimes wear colorful raincoats in inclement weather.
It turns out that this is a Saddleback caterpillar (Sibine stimulea), the larva of a type of moth. Once you get past the green “saddle,” it’s hard to miss all of the spines, which happen to be venomous. According to Wikepedia, stings by this caterpillar can cause swelling, nausea, and leave a rash that can last for days. Yikes! If I had known that in advance, I might not have leaned in to get a close-up shot of the head, though fortunately my 180mm macro lens allowed me to stay at a safe distance.
I can safely say that this is the most bizarre caterpillar I have ever seen. It’s hard to imagine that I can possibly encounter anything stranger than this, but my local marsh continues to surprise and amaze me.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Posted in Fish, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, tagged Canon 50D, fish, Huntley Meadows Park, Nerodia sipedon, Northern Water Snake, predatot, prey, Sigma 135-400mm telephoto zoom lens on August 13, 2013| 18 Comments »
As I was walking along the boardwalk at my local marshland park, I heard some splashing in the shallow, muddy water and was surprised to see a Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon) emerging from the water with a fish in its mouth. I did not see the snake actually catch the fish, but by the time I caught sight of it, the snake already had a firm grip on the head of the fish. I suspect that the snake had moved onto dry land to make certain that the fish had no chance of escaping.
Fascinated and a little horrified, I watched as the snake opened its mouth wider, worked the obviously strong muscles of its throat, and gradually swallowed the small fish. In the series of photos below, you can see how the snake’s head and throat grew larger as more and more of the fish was drawn in.
After the snake finished its meal, it returned to the water and joined two other snakes searching for prey. At times it looked like they might be working together to push the fish into the shallow water. That may have been my imagination, though, as I noted that the successful snake made no attempt to share his catch with the others.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 