I am going to share something with you about these photos. I was walking to my mailbox the other morning to put a letter in to my sweet aunt. I went right past my newly planted butterfly bush and saw to my delight that there were about six butterflies skittering around the blooms. I was so surprised that within a matter of days, my new bush had attracted such a flock of butterflies.
I immediately ran inside to get my camera, hoping that they would still be there when I got back. As I approached the bush, they flew away to the lavender that is planted in the same row. I sat down quietly almost in the flowerbed, hoping that they would come back and they did. I must have taken twenty photos of the butterflies because I wasn’t sure any would come out clearly. I sat and observed these beautiful insects as they flitted from bloom to bloom and noticed so many details about them. I am finding it is easier to remember what I see if I actually say it out loud. Hairy body, small wings, orange and black, dots underneath, long legs….anyone walking by would have thought I was a little nuts. But, it did make it easier when I came inside and pulled out the field guide. I confirmed what I suspected it was by doing a search online and looking at images.
Results:
Hylephila phyleus
Fiery Skipper
The zoomed in photo of his head makes me laugh every time I see it. He looks as if he is wearing sunglasses. Can you believe the shape and size of his proboscis? Amazing creature and I will never forget the morning sitting in my lavender, waiting for the butterflies to come back so I could see them.
What a great idea. I know I’m going to enjoy seeing your nature study blog. If only I could have kept up with my nature journal blog, but alas I’m not even keeping up with my regular blog right now.
what a stunning creature! isn’t God so good …. and a bit of a jokester, too! Yes, it sure does look like sunglasses on that little guy!LOL
I can just picture you sitting in amongst the plants trying to hide and be stealthy in hopes they think you’re merely a mutation of a lavender plant. HAHAHA
have a great day my friend!
Beautiful!
I would not have guessed that to be a butterfly!
And…did you say letter? as in an envelope in a mailbox?!!
A lost art for sure!
Thanks for all the nice comments. It was a great experience.
Keri, I do still write letters but this one I typed and printed out. I prefer to handwrite my “real” letters for the most part but this letter is going to my elderly aunt who finds it much easier to read a letter that has been typed. She is currently living in a rest home and has never touched a computer to my knowledge. She is a dear, sweet part of my life that I am trying to still be a part of even though she is hundreds of miles away and sometimes is not mentally the same as she used to be. I dearly wish she either was in a home nearer to me or she could come and live with us. She is a retired school teacher and is a wealth of information about teaching things “the old way”….. very much Charlotte Mason or Anne of Green Gables. Sigh.
More than you wanted to know, I’m sure.
Barb