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Posts Tagged ‘monarch butterfly’

Late September Monarch

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.

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More September Butterflies

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.

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Bright Butterflies

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.

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Orange butterflies

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.

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Monarchs threatened

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.

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First Monarch of the spring

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.

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Pray for peace

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Patriotism, Ukraine, tagged #sunflowersforukraine, monarch butterfly, sunflower on March 4, 2022| 11 Comments »

The situation in Ukraine is growing increasing grim as Putin’s attacks become more indiscriminate, causing countless civilian casualties and unimaginable suffering and devastation. Please pray for peace.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Late season Monarch

Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on October 21, 2021| 7 Comments »

I was delighted and a bit surprised on Monday to spot this Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. thought the Monarchs had all left the area by now to head to warmer locations. When I posted this photo is a Facebook forum, I learned that viewers also have been spotting occasional Monarchs recently in other parts of Virginia.

Although the calendar tells us that we are well into autumn, we are still reminded from time to time of the beauty of the summer days that are gradually fading from our consciousness. Time moves on inexorably.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Late September Monarchs

Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on September 30, 2021| 10 Comments »

I had given up on Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) for the season, so I was thrilled when I spotted several of them on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I do not know if these are local butterflies, but I like to imagine that they are temporary visitors who stopped in to visit during their magical migration journey to warmer locations.

I photographed these two butterflies in different parts of the wildlife refuge. I thought about using only one of the two photos for this posting, but decided that I really like the impact that the images have as a pair, presenting a kind of yin-yang contrast in light and shadows and overall mood. What do you think?

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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One more Monarch

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, green spring gardens, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm on August 20, 2021| 5 Comments »

With all of the recent rain, I have not gotten out as much as I would have liked—today’s weather forecast noted that we have had rain during nine of the last ten days. So I decided to share another photo today of a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) from my visit last Friday to Green Springs Garden.

In a previous posting entitled Monarchs at last, I showed Monarchs feeding on brightly-colored flowers. The background in today’s image is much more muted and the butterfly appeared to be relaxing rather than actively feeding. I love the way that you can see the butterfly’s curled-up proboscis from this angle, looking almost like a very large nose-ring—yeah, I imagine this to be a punk rock butterfly.

Have a wonderful Friday.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarchs at last

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, green spring gardens, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm on August 15, 2021| 24 Comments »

Several times recently I have noted with regret that I had not yet seen any Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) this summer. On Friday my luck changed and I was absolutely delighted to have multiple encounters with Monarchs during a visit to Green Spring Gardens, a country-run historical garden only a few miles from where I live. Obviously I had been looking for Monarchs in all the wrong places.

I felt carefree as a child as I chased the butterflies all over as they flitted from flower to flower. It was a hot, humid day and it was not long before I was drenched in sweat, but I was content in what I was doing.

I will let the beauty of the Monarchs speak for itself through these photos. I will only add that it was definitely worth the wait.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Last Monarchs of the season?

Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, migrating butterflies, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on October 12, 2020| 18 Comments »

As many of you know, I am always excited to see a Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus). This season started slowly and after a few months I feared that I would not see any of them at all. However, late in the season I began to spot them at multiple locations. Often they were by themselves and only occasionally did I see two of them in the same location.

Imagine my joy when I managed to capture three of them in a single shot on the first of October at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, long after I expected them to have migrated out of our area. The butterflies were feverishly feeding on some thistles that were flowering, probably packing in energy for the long migratory journey south.

I suspect that this will be my last sighting of this colorful butterfly species this year. I bid these three monarchs farewell and wish them a safe onward journey.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch and goldenrod

Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, goldenrod, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on October 1, 2020| 16 Comments »

Have Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) started their migration southward? I thought that they were already gone from my area, but was delighted to spot this one on Tuesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge in a newly blooming patch of goldenrod.

Is this butterfly a bit behind schedule? Perhaps this is a butterfly that started its migration journey from a point farther north and stopped in for a snack. Whatever the reason for its presence, my spotting of this beautiful butterfly added a colorful highlight to my day.

Keep your eyes open and look expectantly for colorful highlights in your own daily lives. That sense of joyful expectation will have a positive influence on your entire day.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch caterpillar

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, milkweed, monarch butterfly, Monarch caterpillar, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 16, 2020| 20 Comments »

Over the years I have developed the habit of checking milkweed plants carefully whenever I spot them. Milkweed plants host an extensive cast of colorful characters including ladybugs, milkweed beetles, and Monarch butterfly caterpillars (Danaus plexippus). Though I have been keeping an eye out for them for the last couple of months, I was unsuccessful in spotting a Monarch caterpillar until this past Sunday when I finally spotted one at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

This Monarch appears to be in one of its final phases of development as a caterpillar, when fattening up seems to be a priority before forming a chrysalis. It is not surprising, therefore, that most of the edges of the leaves in this photo have been gnawed on by the caterpillar. This caterpillar seems to be a little late calendar-wise in its path to becoming a butterfly, but I did spot several Monarchs yesterday, so it seems that the Monarch migration has not yet taken place, or at least not in its entirety.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Stopping power?

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Fort Belvoir VA, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Lyle Krahn, monarch butterfly, stopping power, Tamron 180mm on August 23, 2020| 45 Comments »

There are some subjects that I will try to photograph every single time that I see them. Bald Eagles are high on that list, as are Monarch Butterflies (Danaus plexippus), like this beauty that I spotted last Monday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Both of these subjects have “stopping power” for me.

Seven years ago I read a blog posting entitled “Stopping power” by fellow wildlife photographer Lyle Krahn that introduced me to this concept. In Lyle’s own words, “I think every beautiful scene has stopping power. That’s my term for the ability of a scene to make a person stop hiking or driving in order to pull out a camera and make images. Did you ever wonder what makes you stop? Do you ever hear the music?” That idea really took root in me and I still think about it quite often and vividly recall that initial posting.

What is your threshold for putting your camera to you eye and taking photos? Would you stop to photograph a squirrel or a Canada Goose or a mallard duck? Does a subject have to be new or exotic for you to stop? Are you so focused on a single subject that the rest of the world is invisible to you or simply doesn’t matter? Lyle described an encounter with a bear watcher in Grand Tetons National who said that he would not stop to photograph a moose. Yikes! It is hard to imagine not stopping to photograph a moose.

Most of you know that my personal threshold is really low—I will stop to take photos of almost anything that catches my eye. Every now and then I will end a posting with the words “beauty is everywhere” and I truly believe that. Of course, there is an opportunity cost for spending time on one subject and you might miss out on another potential subject. I am ok with that and rarely fall prey to the sense of anxiety that is popularly called FOMO (fear of missing out).

Even if you are not someone who takes pleasure in taking photos, I encourage you to stop more often during the day, to pause to feel the wind or listen to a bird or smell the flowers. I believe that in doing so you can lower the threshold for “stopping power” and experience our wonderful world more deeply.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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More monarchs

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Fort Belvoir VA, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm on August 13, 2020| 14 Comments »

In a recent posting featuring my first Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) of the year, I lamented the scarcity of Monarchs this summer. A few days later, I was delighted to spot several more Monarchs during a visit to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. The Monarchs moved about quite a bit and I ended up sweaty and out of breath after chasing them all over, but I was more than happy with the results.

The Monarchs concentrated most of their efforts on several patches of swamp milkweed at the edge of a small pond. I moved quickly as I tried to compose shots with both a good background and a photogenic wing position, which often was easier said than done.

In the first shot you get a view of some of the vegetation growing in the pond and the lighting from that angle really made the colors pop. The second shot gives you a wide view of the largest patch of swamp milkweed that the Monarch was sharing with some much smaller Pearl Crescent butterflies. I captured the final image in an adjacent field. The dominant green of the vegetation and the vertical lines of the stalks of the vegetation give this image a much different feel that the other two images. I think the three images work well together as a little collection.

I continue to remain hopeful that I will continue to see more Monarchs (and other butterflies too) as we move deeper into summer.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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First Monarch of the season

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, clover, Danaus plexippus, green spring gardens, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm on August 3, 2020| 24 Comments »

This butterfly had its choice of flowers as I chased after it last week at Green Spring Gardens, but it chose instead to grab some nectar from a lowly clover plant. Still, I can’t complain—it was my first sighting of a Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) this season.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch with flowers

Posted in Art, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, Summer, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, green spring gardens, lantana, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm on September 3, 2019| 12 Comments »

Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) are beautiful in any situation, but when you surround them with red, orange, and yellow flowers, they absolutely explode with color. I was thrilled when I spotted this Monarch during a short visit to Green Spring Gardens this past Saturday morning. The butterfly was initially quite skittish and flew all around before finally settling on what I believe to be some kind of lantana flower. I had to maneuver around to try to get a good shooting position, but the butterfly stayed put for a minute and accommodated me. I was super happy when I managed to include some of the colorful flowers in the background and I just love the way that the colors work so well together.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch and goldenrod

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on August 15, 2019| 16 Comments »

I haven’t seen many Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) this season, so I was thrilled when I spotted this one on some goldenrod on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

The habitat of Monarch butterfly has been threatened in recent years both in the United States and in the areas to which Monarchs migrate. According to an article yesterday at oregonlive.com, the Monarch butterfly is currently under government consideration for listing under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch and asters

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on October 21, 2018| 4 Comments »

Despite the cooler autumn temperatures, there are still quite a few butterflies fluttering about, like this Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus)that I spotted last weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I think that the little flowers are some kind of aster—they seem to be going strong at a time when most other flowers are wilting and turning brown.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch butterfly and thistle

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, thistle, Woodbridge VA on September 28, 2018| 9 Comments »

I suspect that all of the Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) will soon be leaving our area for warmer places, so I am really trying to enjoy each and every encounter with one. I spotted this beauty feeding on some kind of thistle plant thispast weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Mating Monarchs

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon SX50, Danaus plexippus, mating monarchs, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge VA on September 11, 2018| 6 Comments »

Nestled gently in the leaves of a tall tree, these two Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) were mating, doing their part to perpetuate a species often considered at risk. I captured this image in late August at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and re-discovered it yesterday when I was going through my photos from the week before my recent trip to Brussels.

I love the way that the upper butterfly is discreetly hidden by the leaves, but is revealed in its shadow. I find the colors in this image to be especially beautiful. with a wonderful contrast between the warmth of the orange and the coolness of the blue. Most of all, though, I love the way that the background turned out, with its soft circles of out-of-focus highlights.

This is the kind of image that I strive to capture, one that gently draws in viewers and speaks to them softly, reminding them of the undiscovered beauty that surrounds them all of the time.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Sweet summer nectar

Posted in Autumn, Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on September 9, 2018| 9 Comments »

The incessant rain and cooler weather since my return from Brussels make it feel like it’s already autumn. Like this Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, however, I am not quite ready to cease sipping the sweet nectar of summer.

I captured this image on 31 August, the day before my departure for my recent overseas trip. The combination of rainy weather can jet lag have so far kept me from venturing out with my camera, but I hope to do so this coming week.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Zowie Zinnia and Monarch

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Cindy Dyer, Danaus plexippus, green spring gardens, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm, Zowie Zinnia on August 19, 2018| 9 Comments »

There were lots of flowers in bloom yesterday at Green Spring Gardens, a historic county-run garden not far from where I live. One of my favorites was the Zowie Zinnia and a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) seemed to like it a lot too.

I was at the garden with my dear friend and photography mentor, Cindy Dyer, and her husband. We were all taking a break at one point and I told Cindy that I was going to return to a patch of Zowie Zinnias to see if I could get a shot of a butterfly landing on one. We both recalled a photo that she took in 2010 (check out her blog posting) when an Easter Tiger Swallowtail butterfly appeared out of nowhere and landed on one of the two Zowie Zinnias that she was focusing on with her camera on a tripod.

Imagine her surprise when a couple of minutes later I returned with this photo. She grabbed her camera and went to the patch of zinnia, but, alas, the butterflies were not as cooperative for her as they had been for me.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch butterfly in August

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Tamron 180mm, Vienna VA on August 12, 2018| 3 Comments »

I am always excited to see Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus). Over the years there have been numerous reports of this species becoming endangered, primarily because of the loss of habitat. Some years, I have spotted only a few Monarch during an entire summer. This year I have been fortunate enough to see them at several of the locations that I frequent.

I spotted this spectacular Monarch butterfly yesterday while visiting Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in nearby Vienna, Virginia with some fellow photographers. Each of us has a different style of shooting and preferred subjects and we usually shoot separately. It is always a lot of fun when we reassemble after shooting and share our photos and experiences with each other over dinner at a restaurant.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch and milkweed

Posted in Butterflies, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on July 13, 2018| 11 Comments »

Whenever I see a patch of milkweed I will usually stop and and watch and wait. Milkweed attracts such a colorful cast of insect characters that it reminds me a little of the Mos Eisley Cantina in the original Star Wars movie.

My patience was rewarded this past Saturday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge when a Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) stopped by for a visit and I was able to capture this image.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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First Monarch of the spring

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 10, 2018| 9 Comments »

Early Monday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I spotted my first Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) of the spring. It seemed really skittish and flew up into the trees. I was happy to be able to capture this image from an unusual angle—it is not often that I photograph a butterfly while aiming my camera in an upwards direction.

Some years I see only a few Monarchs and I read quite often about their threatened habitats. I am therefore excigted each time that I am blessed to see one of these beautiful butterflies.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monarch in mid-September

Posted in Butterflies, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, thistle on September 16, 2017| 7 Comments »

I was thrilled this morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge to see that there are still quite a few Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) in our area, including this beauty that I was able to photograph as it was feeding on a thistle plant.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Spider and Monarch

Posted in Arachnids, Butterflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spiders, tagged Argiope aurantia, Black and Yellow Garden Orbweaver spider, Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 180mm, Woodbridge VA on August 21, 2017| 3 Comments »

The beautiful Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is often featured in conservation efforts that focus on its dwindling numbers and shrinking habitat. It was therefore a little disconcerting to stumble upon a Monarch that had been ensnared in the web of a Black and Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia) during a visit this past weekend to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

I have no idea how long the butterfly had been in the web, but it appeared to be totally immobilized. Spiders like this one, known also as Yellow Garden Spiders or Writing Spiders, kill their prey by injecting venom and often wrap them up in web material for later consumption.

I considered cropping this image to focus more attention on the spider and the butterfly, but ultimately decided that I liked the context provided by the elements of the spider’s web and the murky, out-of-focus background.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Monarch and Queen Anne

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Danaus plexippus, Daucus carota, Huntley Meadows Park, Monarch, monarch butterfly, Queen Anne's Lace, Tamron 180mm on August 17, 2017| 3 Comments »

Although I tend to associate Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) with milkweed, this Monarch was hungrily feeding on Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota) this past weekend at Huntley Meadows Park. I am not sure why, but I have seen significantly more Monarch butterflies this summer than in the past few years.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Indigo Bunting and Monarch

Posted in Birds, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, Summer, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Canon SX50, Danaus plexippus, Indigo Bunting, McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, monarch butterfly, Passerina cyanea, Poolesville MD, sunflowers on August 6, 2017| 14 Comments »

In the first sunflower field that we visited yesterday morning at McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, many of the sunflowers were drooping because of the weight of their seeds. They may not have been very photogenic, but the birds and butterflies seemed to love them, like this Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea) and this Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) that I spotted among the sunflowers.

Several photographer friends and I made the trip to the sunflower fields in Poolesville, Maryland, hoping to see endless rows of tall sunflowers. According to its website, McKee-Beshers has 30 acres of sunflowers planted in nine different fields. I think that the sunflowers may have been a little past their prime and appeared to be a little stunted in size, compared to some past years.

It was tricky to figure out what kind of gear to bring on a trek like this. I ended up using my super zoom Canon SX50 to photograph the Indigo Bunting, which was a first sighting for me of this beautiful bird, and my Canon 24-105mm lens on my normal Canon 50D DSLR for the butterfly. I had both of the cameras with me at all times, which gave me a pretty good amount of flexibility. I’ve seen some photographers walk around with two DSLR bodies, but that seems like a lot of weight to carry around, especially when you are moving through vegetation as I was doing as I waded through the rows of sunflowers.

I did take shot shots of the sunflowers and I’ll post some of them eventually. Folks who know me, though, are probably not surprised that my first instinct was to post images of birds and butterflies, rather than ones of the flowers alone.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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