I was captivated by the sweet beauty of those Small Copper Butterflies (Lycaena pulseas timeus) flying in the meadows surrounding Neve Ativ. That skiing moshav (village) on the slope of Mt. Hermon enjoyed lush wildflower meadows that Spring, and its Copper butterflies bedazzled.
She nectared long on this flowerhead, no rush, no concern. Her little stubs of ‘tails’ were there, and she had those faint blue dots on her hindwing.
Lycaenidae flying in the Golan of Israel, yummy!
Jeff
I broke the rules here. I did. I never ever share images of butterflies on my hand, or on my clothing. When I’m opening your post of Facebook, I don’t hit “Like” if your butterfly image is like that. I’m not in favor of contact with butterflies in the field, for a host of reasons.
This one tested that practice. I was working a trail that stretched from one pond to another, at Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge on the Georgia coast. There was a sizable area that had once been disturbed, and Blue’s were flying there, with wildlfowers beckoning them, here and there. I sought to ID those tiny blues, were they Cassius Blues or Ceraunus Blues . . . when the comely butterfly flew onto the Cellphone!
Loved those ‘eyes’ on its hindwing. Its marking were sharp and fresh. Wings newly minted and not birdstruck. I wanted this Ceraunus, for my images of this species, several years ago at Big Bend Wildlife Management Area . . . left me awaiting my next chance to shoot Ceraunus.
This was a Beaut! But, but it had come to the Cell to imbibe the minerals I continued to leave, from my sweat, that hot Georgia coastline morning.
True, I am a (stickler), but, but . . . Yep I shot away, and here is the image I want you to see, of a fine Ceraunus Blue Butterfly, who’d make it’s mother and father proud.
Jeff
Viceroys are butterflies that frustrate. They appear to be a species that should be easy to score an excellent image of . . . but look some people, never seem to photograph well.
This Basilarchia archippus was sipping mineral-rich moisture in Leroy Percy State Park, not too far from Greenville, Mississippi.
Isn’t it tempting to confuse it with another very well-known butterfly, the Monarch? But the black line curving along the hindwing identifies our subject as a Vicery.
The southern Viceroys are noticeably more colorful than those found back home in Pennsylvania.
Southern Viceroys were also more approachable and less apt to exasperate the pursuing photographer.
A wetland butterfly, always found in proximity of water.
Jeffrey
Winged Beauty Butterflies 