Tuliptree Blossom with Guest
Another Day at Work
Apis Workers' Party
Predator
Some of Your Beeswax
Sedum Bumbler
Look of Defiance
Chicory Bee
Bumbling Bees
Garden Cafe
Buzz By Here - To Infinity and Beyond
Pick Your Poison
Blind Side Attack
On a Mission
Honey Bee on Sedum
Covering the Cosmos
Center of the Cosmos
Three's a Crowd
Popular Spot
On A Pedestal
Big Harry Fireworks Display
To Impress the Girl
Different Perspective
Sweet Ride
Perfect Little Piggies B&W
Flipping the Light Fantastic
Festival of Flights
To the Crowd's Delight
Amish Go Round
Wondersome One
The Stars In Her Eyes
Tuesday's Child
Sleeper Hold
Considering the Next Move
Sugar and Spice
Front Porch Portrait
Caged Competitor
Early Adoration
Child In the Ligtht
Stroll Through the Weeds
Attention Grabbing
Eye Contact
On the Line
Eyes of Wonder
Rounding the Curve
Troubadours of Basin Spring Park
Down by the Creek
Sun Day
Catching Some Light
EAA Fireworks
Hear Me Roar
Flowers
Sunny Delight
Everyone loves sunflowers. There is just something about their bright, cheery disposition that even a cloudy day can’t dampen. A full field of them is sheer delight!
We’ve had some dreary, gray days – weather wise – recently. I thought a sunflower image would be a welcome sight. This field of sunflowers was found in our area of rural Kewaunee County, WI.
To see a larger version of this photo, click on the image.
Colorful Queen Ann’s Lace
I’m not overly particular about my subjects. I take photos of anything that catches my eye. This was something that caught my eye because I found it unusual.
This is common Queen Ann’s Lace. Normally the delicate flowers are snow white and create a full bouquet – with little space between the blooms. The color and sparse display for this bunch must be due to the onset of colder weather. Normally the stems are a simple green, not the purplish-red color seen here. (This photo was take this fall.)
You can view a larger version by clicking on the photo.
The Center of Passion
There is something about this image that captivates me. I’d like to say it was taken in some exotic location, but it wasn’t. It is the center of a poppy from the flower bed beside our home.
Of course, it’s the rich, deep red of the petals that initially grab me. However, it’s the purple center, ringed by the dark seeds, that keep me staring.
I realize this is one of those images that either trips your trigger…or not. Feel free to leave a comment, either way.
Click the image to see a larger version.
Botanicals
Here are a couple of the images I liked from my recent visit to Green Bay’s Botanical Gardens.
Click either photo to see a larger version of the image.
The Stand Off
While photographing wildflowers I noticed yellow spiders hiding among the foliage. I believe they are in the crab spider family. They seemed to be waiting for prey to come by. That was, in fact, the case. (See some of my previous posts.)
I’d been photographing these yellow spiders on purple thistles. Then I noticed a similar spider on a yellow flower. While I was taking his picture, a soldier beetle landed on the flower. I wondered what would happen.
After taking a few photos, I decided to switch to taking video. I remembered nature films I’d seen where an alligator snatches an unsuspecting antelope that stopped for a drink. I thought this, on a decidedly smaller scale, might provide the same kind of drama.
I only got a short, six seconds of video. It looked like the solider beetle bumped into the spider and then flew off. Not too dramatic. However, when I slowed the video down, it turns out it was a much closer call than I originally thought.
Watch the video below and pay particular attention to the slow motion footage. When slowed down, you can see the spider actually grabs the leg of the soldier beetle in its jaws. The beetle is able to pull away before the spider can get a better hold. The best way to view it is to click the full-screen icon in the lower right corner of the video box.
Click on the photo at the top to see a lager version.
Fatal Attraction
I discovered yellow spiders hiding among the the thistles. I assumed they were waiting for unsuspecting prey. I took some photos, downloaded them to my computer and posted them to this blog under the title Dangerously Alluring Beauty.
Several hours later, I went back to check on them. I was right! This is the same thistle and spider from the previous post.
As you can see, a small bee, buzzing from flower to flower, attracted by the thistle, received an instant invitation to lunch.
The image on the right is the same scene from a different angle.
I wish I had hung around long enough to catch the action live. However, it just so happens, when I finished photographing this carnage, I noticed a similar yellow spider, poised with arms open wide, waiting for a its meal on a yellow flower. Then a bug came along. I started snapping pictures. The bug walked around the flower until it finally came face to face with the spider…and then…
You’ll have to watch for those images in a future post to see how it turned out.
To view larger versions of either of these photos, just click on them.
Dangerously Alluring Beauty
I went for another walk in the Missouri woods with my camera and noticed something new among the thistles.
This yellow and black spider was strategically positioned and patiently waiting to strike insects who may be attracted to the colorful thistle.
If you look closely at the image above, it looks like some of the thistle is twisted in strands to the side – giving the spider easier access to any prey that might land on the top of the flower. Is the spider smart enough to make an easier path to the kill or is it just a naturally occurring coincidence? I wonder.
The photo to the right show another spider snugly tucked deep in the strands of the thistle. Waiting…waiting…waiting…
Now that I look at them, maybe I should have waited to see and document what happens. It might have taken a long time with me just a few inches from the blossoms. The spiders are more patient than I am.
You can get a closer look at either photo by simply clicking on them.
Thistles on Display
I took a walk through the woods in Missouri and came across this clump of thistles.
I have a difficult time walking outdoors with my camera and not photographing every flower of color I encounter…even if I have a dozen images of the same kind flower…even when they’re weeds.
Here’s a little of what Wikipedia says about thistles…
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles often occur all over the plant – on surfaces such as those of the stem and flat parts of leaves. These are an adaptation that protects the plant against herbivorous animals, discouraging them from feeding on the plant. Typically, an involucre with a clasping shape of a cup or urn subtends each of a thistle’s flowerheads.
In the language of flowers, the thistle (like the burr) is an ancient Celtic symbol of nobility of character as well as of birth, for the wounding or provocation of a thistle yields punishment.
The thistle has been the national emblem of Scotland since the reign of Alexander III (1249–1286) and was used on silver coins issued by James III in 1470. It is the symbol of the Order of the Thistle, a high chivalric order of Scotland. It is found in many Scottish symbols and as the name of several Scottish football clubs. The thistle, crowned with the Scottish crown, is the symbol of seven of the eight Scottish Police Forces (the exception being the Northern Constabulary). The thistle is also the emblem of Encyclopædia Britannica, which originated in Edinburgh, Scotland. Carnegie Mellon University features the thistle in its crest.
According to a legend, an invading Norse army was attempting to sneak up at night upon a Scottish army’s encampment. During this operation one barefoot Norseman had the misfortune to step upon a thistle, causing him to cry out in pain, thus alerting Scots to the presence of the Norse invaders.
You can see a larger image of the thistles by clicking on them.
Sunshine on a Stalk
Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow. It’s what sunflowers do. – Helen Keller
The sunflowers are in bloom! In our area, we are blessed with several fields of sunflowers every summer – thanks to our good neighbors, the Kuehl Seed Farm.
When the field is on a main highway, it is quite common to see people pull over, jump out and snap a couple of pictures with a digital camera. And who can blame them. A field of sunflowers in full bloom is so bright and cheerful it’s natural to want to take it home with you. This field of flowers is on Highway 42, Just north of Kewaunee, WI. (While I was taking these photos at least four other cars stopped to do the same.)
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(Click either image to see a larger version.)
Messy Hands
This is an image that dates back to 2006. This photo was the initial inspiration for my experimentation and reasonable success with macro photography.
My old camera, a Kodak Easyshare DX7590, did an exceptional job with macro shots. When I saw what was possible – after taking this image – I started to major on the minors. I can spend hours crouched down by a flower bed, moving slowly, trying to be unnoticed while I position my camera as close as possible to any tiny creatures I can find. I was just a few inches from this bee when I snapped this photo.
I love seeing the normally, unseen details of God’s creation. For instance, in this image, I am fascinated by the bee’s wings, the pollen on the flower and bee’s legs, that little dongle thing protruding from the bee’s head, it’s eyes and the orange tipped spears of the cone flower.
If you find this image appealing, please feel free to share it with friends. (If you’re on Facebook, simply click one of the Facebook links below this story.)
To see a larger version and even more detail, click the photo.
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