08-17-2018 12:23 AM - edited 09-01-2018 08:10 AM
Butterflies, I love them, they always make me happy. I do not live in a very hot country but I think maybe in hot countries there are many colours of butterflies. This is a photo of the most common one where I live
08-17-2018 01:47 AM
@Eire27 Actually, some species that used to live only in warmer countries are now showing up I colder ones. This particular one used to be seen in southern Europe, but now I have seen it several times already in the middle of Germany (where this picture was taken a week or so ago)
08-17-2018 06:18 AM
Hi @JanVanHaver That's very interesting, I live in Ireland and in July we had the hottest weather since the 1970s and we had many strange insects, spiders and huge jelly fish in the ocean too. Maybe climate change in the world has them all moving around new countries
08-21-2018 10:04 PM - edited 08-21-2018 11:40 PM
Very nice butterfly photos @Eire27 and @JanVanHaver If I may, I'll add my photos taken today (Aug 21, 2018), at Abma Farms in Wykoff, NJ. The butterfly shown is a Monarch which is fairly common in this region at this time of year. They migrate 2,000 miles to here, and up into Canada, from their Mexico wintering grounds. I have read recently that their population has declined by more than 90% in the past 20 years. The chief reason for the decline is caused by a reduction of available Milkweed plant. The Milkweed plant is the primary food source for both Monarch caterpillars as well as the adult butterflies. Apparently, the widespread use of herbicides, loss of open land and other eco related changes have led to this loss of Milkweed. So lets enjoy the Monarch while it's still around. Thanks for starting the thread @Eire27
@ilanAbecassis @Rjshagor @LucioV
08-21-2018 10:35 PM
When we were living in Kinshasa, Congo, my daughter and I found this cool prickly caterpillar in a park. We brought it to our garden and after a few days of eating leaves it changed to a pupae. We observed every day and after 11 days it emerged into a beautiful butterfly. The different stages can be seen in the composite photo below and you can follow the whole story in this series of photos.
08-21-2018 10:37 PM
Beautiful
08-21-2018 10:37 PM
Woops everyone. My apologies. Without realizing it, the magician inside my computer flipped my photos sideways and I didn't catch it before I posted. Sorry for that. You'll have to pretend that in New Jersey the flowers grow sideways. The butterfly is the focus of the picture in any event.
08-21-2018 10:41 PM
Very interesting series of photographs and nice photography work @Nick-Hobgood My hat is off to you.
Regards @Koby
08-22-2018 02:51 AM
Wow, I love butterflies! This was running against my daughter (he was really scared 😄 ) some days ago
08-22-2018 04:42 AM
Hi @Nick-Hobgood Wow, This is Amazing! Wonderful photos and a great experience for your daughter to see nature and see the catapillar turn into a butterfly in real life ☺ Thanks for sharing