Red-spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis)
Even as we enter September there are still plenty of beautiful butterflies on the wing like this Red-spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis) photographed yesterday. It has some wear and tear, and it is a bit faded, but the exquisite design still shines brightly on a gray day. Take a look at all the shots it allowed me to capture while nectaring on this butterfly bush. You can see there are rips on the wings with the edges have been worn away, but what is most striking to me is how those wings still reflect and change light. The colors appear to be duller, bolder, brighter, darker, more vibrant...
Read MoreRed-spotted Purple
This is a Red-spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis) butterfly showing off some of those red spots on a leaf last week. The harsh and very bright mid-morning sunlight really washed the butterfly (and photo) out, so what you see is my work balancing those contrasts and tones a bit. Woodland edges are usually a good place to find them. I was only able to get a good ventral view, and the somewhat skittish individual never allowed me a dorsal photograph. I wish it would relax – it’s a Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor) mimic and telling me it is poisonous, so why not shoot some...
Read MoreRed-spotted Purple butterfly
I saw this distant Red-spotted Purple butterfly yesterday morning while finding some migrant warblers, vireos and flycatchers. There are still plenty of butterflies hanging on here as we enter mid-September despite nights with chilly temperatures in the low 40s.
Read MorePearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos)
Some of the butterflies hanging out at RTPI today include the Red-spotted Purple, Monarch, Great Spangled Fritillary, Peck’s Skipper, and Pearl Crescents (Phyciodes tharos) like this one.
Read MoreButterflies – National Pollinator Week
This is the last day of National Pollinator Week which ran from June 16 through June 22. It turned out to be very appropriate timing for us in Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania as more insects emerged and vegetation continued to grow very rapidly. I actually had some days with several more “first of year” sightings of bees, dragonflies, and butterflies, the group I wanted to focus on and share photos of in this entry. The following were photographed in the last week in the Chautauqua-Allegheny region in public locations like state game lands, wildlife management...
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