A fast-flying yellow swallowtail stopped long enough to grace our the wildflower garden yesterday. 
Me and my shadow
While pausing for a moment on a weekend walkabout, a daredevil butterfly began flying tight circles around me at knee level. Several mad minutes passed as I tried to follow his flight round and round and round. Never could catch the little booger, but settled for his shadow.
Gotcha!
Butterflies and dragonflies in flight can be mesmerizing. However, their erratic flight styles can drive you crazy when trying to capture them in pixels, whether panning with a real viewfinder or even worse, trying to pan using a digital viewfinder and its fraction-of-a-second lag (and no drive or burst function).
Well, a little spray and pray with the shutter yielded my favorite shot of the morning as this red-spotted purple moved through the canopy of the valley forest.
The nectar games
When the competition at the feeder was too rough, some hummingbirds opted to find nectar in the wildflowers below. The competition there was pretty good too — what with all those butterflies, bees and other pollinators. Here, a hummingbird goes for what must be the juiciest flower in the garden, since the butterfly was already there.
Voila!
A red-spotted purple emerges from its chrysalis July 22, a week after the photo on the left was taken. What a treat to catch this event just before having to start the morning commute.
Grounded
This red-spotted purple probably escaped a predator at the cost of a wing and the ability to escape again. Though grounded, he continued to spread his wings in the sunshine.
A question answered with a question mark
Saw this beauty in the sumac below the deck this morning and wondered what he was. My question was answered by the orange page of University of Florida butterfly guide. He’s called a Question Mark and has a lovely Latin name too: Polygonia interrogationis.
And speaking of things orange, there’s a new sunset posted. Well, not really new. One from a snow-covered day in March.
The monarch is back!
The monarchs are back. Well, at least one monarch. This one was trying to rest in the goldenrod this morning, but found himself being buffeted by breezes, honey bees, wasps and other pollinators. You can see the wear on his wings — appearing as scratches in some of his orange areas.
Some days, you just need a butterfly
Was out washing the car this afternoon and saw this common buckeye making the rounds in this sweet-scented wildflower growing next to the driveway. They were a welcome distraction — especially when, during the weekends, we become obsessed with getting done those things left undone during the work week. The hose and rags got put aside for a few glorious standing-still-moments in the sunshine. Some days, you just need a butterfly.
In a few weeks, we should be seeing the monarch butterflies sweeping through on their southward migration. We keep a couple of patches of goldenrods for these beautiful insects to light upon as they head south. The Blonde Gardener has a nice post about being a Monarch Watch Station and a couple of posts about the monarchs’ life cycle. Maybe next year, we’ll try the watch station idea.
Winged beauties
The last few weeks in the Ouachitas have been a treat for the eyes.
Shimmering blue accents this black swallowtail.
Unidentified flying orange insect stands out against the very green landscape.
Eight-spotted forester moth enjoye the fragrant holly blossoms.
Unidentified dusky moth hides in the lavender on a sunny day.
Mourning cloak butterfly lands on the concrete roadway.
Yellow swallowtail rests in the sunlight.
