Post your insects

[Cantab]

Looks very much like a nymphalidae melanargia, but I find it difficult to pinpoint the subspecies further.

Peter, this is a very attractive photo. Is the plant a butterfly bush (buddleia davidii)?

[Cantab]

I have other close ups but this is the only little guy that I have taken with my macro lens. This is when I discovered that earwigs have wings - he was on my fourth floor balcony.

A monster earwig! More seriously, it's a good sharp photo of the head, etc. The legs look almost transluscent. Is it possible the earwig climbed up to your place of abode or were you able to see the actual wings?

[VanessaS]

Is it possible the earwig climbed up to your place of abode or were you able to see the actual wings?

I actually saw him fluttering them through the camera but I wasn't able to get a shot of it. I regret that.

[Geoff F]

A large moth which rests in this unusual position so it appears to be a dead leaf.



Poplar Hawkmoth. About 3 inches across.

Yesterday, I watched a pair of Large Red Damselflies laying eggs in a pond. The male was holding a female by her head while she laid eggs under the water.

But try as I might, I just couldn't get a suitable camera angle to show the scene properly. The only angles I could obtain didn't have sufficient focus depth and they were moving too much to do any focus stacking.

However, I did manage one shot of the situation just prior to egg laying.



Struggling a bit with exposure on this shot.

[Letrow]

Peter, this is a very attractive photo. Is the plant a butterfly bush (buddleia davidii)?

Yes, it is. That garden had lots of the Buddleia. We have some at home as well and they are a joy for the insects.

[Letrow]

I think there is only one option for Northern Europe, Peter. Marbled White (Melanargia galathea).

The similar species only occur in Spain, Turkey and a few parts of Southern Italy.

I hear people talking about increased numbers of this species, but I haven't seen one for a couple of years. And that was just a fleeting glimpse.

First time I saw them Geoff. Quite a lot of them around in this particular garden (Dordogne, France).

[Letrow]

Bumblebees, they always look happy somehow.

[Letrow]

A special hummingbird like insect from the Jardin de Cadiot









Macroglossum stellatarum or hummingmoth

Difficult to photograph as it moves fast and only hovers, which is why I provided a few shots of questionable quality.

[Cantab]

Peter, an interesting set of images -- I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen these photos. It has a spectacularly long tongue or feeding tube!

[Rita]

I took this pic on a recent trip to Cambodia. Don't know what it is but someone said
that it looked like a stink bug.

[WJT]

I caught these Green Ants building a nest from Pandanus leaves which is something I have only seen twice in my life. The leaves are about 1 metre long and very strong so the effort and team work required is hard to explain. I call it Empire Builders as it reminds me of the colonial days when the monarchy would call the settles that to make them feel important.

[Cantab]

I took this pic on a recent trip to Cambodia. Don't know what it is but someone said
that it looked like a stink bug.

Rita, a very good shot. The bug looks fierce!

[Geoff F]

Peter, I have occasionally found Hummingbird Hawkmoths on the ground where they are much easier to photograph. But so difficult in flight. If they hovered in the same spot you would have a chance, but as soon as I focus, they move!

Bit of day like that today. Everything was flighty or at the wrong angle and impossible for me to move around. Even when everything was looking good, another insect would appear and scare away my model.

Ticked off a few species and took a load of photos; but a quick look at them suggests most will be ditched once I have established the identification.

This beetle looks a bit oddly marked but I suspect it is just a variation of Rutpela maculata.

[rtbaum]

I'm not sure if this belong in macro of flowers or post your insects


Hummingbird Moth( & Bumblebee) on Monarda

[Letrow]

For me it would be insects Randy, that is what draws my eyes. Difficult to photograph those moths, right?

[rtbaum]

only problem was that I was set up for birds and exposure was low

[jdathebowler]

Saw this Bumblebee covered in pollen.Would welcome comments please.

[Letrow]

As far as I can make out a Eurydema ornata

[Bunty Plumchip]

Peacock on white hebe: 1/500s 90.0mm f7.1
Large white on white hebe: 1/320s 62.00mm f9.0


Nikon D70S macro setting

Still practising!

[jdathebowler]

Tortoiseshell Butterfly on a Buddleia Bush


Tortoiseshell Butterfly on a Buddleia Bush by jdathebowler, on Flickr