Orange Sulphur – iNaturalist There are complete pink and black spots that run from top to bottom During the summer of 2023, we had an extremely prolific flower garden that was teeming with different perennials. I was walking around taking photos of some of these flowers when I came upon this butterfly. Its common name […]
Red Admiral – iNaturalist The red admiral was previously known by the common name, the red admirable When I took this photo, I had just finished up a scuba dive in the middle of Indiana. The water had been a brisk temperature, and I was ready to heat up. My towel was being guarded by […]
Monarch – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern The lifecycle of the monarch butterfly is complex The first thing that I noticed when I saw this beautiful monarch chrysalis were the rings of gold spots lining its exterior. I thought to myself, how in the world was this color created by an insect?! It actually comes […]
Great Spangled Fritillary – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern This great spangled fritillary was enjoying the many native flowers This photo was taken at Brown County State Park in southern Indiana. Jill and I had set up camp and were out for a hike on a hot summer day in July. This great spangled fritillary […]
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail – IUCN Conservation Status: Insufficient Data The eastern tiger swallowtail has a unique wing extension on its hindwings This pretty pollinator is called an eastern tiger swallowtail. It is a common butterfly found throughout the Eastern United States, from spring through fall. Their range is as far south as Florida to as far north […]
Black Swallowtail – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern These voracious eaters would take down a three-foot-tall plant in its entirety in only a few short days! I took this photo as I was coming down from the summit of Emory Peak in Big Bend National Park. I took a lot of macro photos on this […]
IUCN Conservation Status: – LEAST CONCERN An Aphrodite fritillary butterfly feeds ons the goldenrod flower This beautiful wildflower is called a goldenrod. These are perennial flowers that are found throughout Maine. They scatter the mountainsides in the summer months. This photo was taken in Bethel, Maine (a small town of ~2500 people). DONATE These large […]
Monarch butterflies are known to travel thousands of miles each year! Like so many others, I have always found the monarch butterfly to be such a beautiful insect. Its lore is made all the more powerful by the amazing continental journey that the species takes each year. The eastern North American monarch population travels thousands […]
The northern pearly-eye butterfly waited for me on a rail. This northern pearly-eye butterfly was sitting on the railing of a bridge when Jill and I were on a hike at the Weldon Spring Conservation Area just north of St. Louis, Missouri. This park provides a great view of the Missouri River. We took the […]
I was out for a hike…looking for bees Getting close up with butterflies was not what I was expecting at the start of the day when this photo was taken. I was out for a hike with my brother, Nick, looking for bees. He’s studying bee diseases (that’s my simple description of it) as part […]