Category: wildlife

The Lady Of Mystery I Met In The Park

Color Photography, wildlife
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Question Mark Butterfly 92920a” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

The warm autumn light filters down through the contact changing leaves as my big blue truck ebbs its way into the little round about. This was a homestead more than 50 years ago but today it’s a maintenance shed in the park. I hadn’t been there in thirty years though I had passed by it on a regular basis. Today however, I was drawn by a wondering if there was anything left of the former structure. There wasn’t, just a shed for the crews that maintain the park and campground. But my instincts bid me to linger just a little. I stopped the truck and rolled the windows down to listen for birds that might be just out of sight. As my eyes swept through the bushes and trees a dead leaf dropped from a branch and burst forth in a blaze of orange. She landed on the side of a tree as if drawn by a magnet. The body was the color and texture of moss and her fiery wings bore the hue of a turning leaf. And yet a mere moment earlier she was mottled and gray and perfectly camouflaged as a dead leaf. Had I noticed in time to focus in on the underside of the wing I may have been able to see the silvery spots that form a question mark. These are the markings that give the Question Mark Butterfly it’s name. In true “lady of mystery” fashion she flattened her wings and held them tightly against the bark.

Can we peer into the mystery and find answers to her question? The answer is yes. Yes we can. As it turns out her display of color and even her position on the tree was not for my benefit.

First, there are two types of Butterfly with almost identical markings. The Question Mark Butterfly and the Comma Butterfly. But with the punctuation mark under the wing and against the tree how do we know which one we have? Both butterflies have 3 dots near the edge of the forewing but only the Question Mark Butterfly has the fourth elongated mark on the outside. The Comma Butterfly also lacks the dot of a question mark on the silvery spots underneath.

The odd position she landed on the tree wasn’t by chance. The female Question Mark Butterfly displays herself in this inverted position in order to attract a mate. And unlike other butterflies she does not lay her eggs directly onto a host plant. Her children will have to go look for their own food as soon as they hatch. Fortunately for the Question Mark Butterfly children their diets are not as limited as other butterflies and they have a few more options on menu.

Image Titled “Question Mark Butterfly 92920b” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

After a few minutes of of trying to get just the right photos I did decide to back off and allow her to continue trying to get her boyfriend’s attention. Three is a crowd and I want more butterflies in this park next year.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

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I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

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Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

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The Mountain’s Call Part 2

Color Photography, wildlife
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “White Turtlerheads 92520a” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

Deeper into the hidden world the Mountain’s call pulls me. The big blue truck rolls beyond the old fence posts covered by roses that have gone feral and surrounded fallow ground with thorns and bright red hips. Below the road and beneath twisted branches squirrels play where once a groomed orchard grew. And still, the sleeping mountain calls me deeper into the seldom seen to show me how well she has been healing. And there in a ditch where the forest meets the road was a treasure I’ve only seen in books and gardens during all my wanderings. A colony of white Turtlerheads! Now I realize that this is a common sight in the garden but in 52 years I have not found them in the wild. Which is odd to me because here we have an Appalachian Native plant that seems to have migrated from forests to gardens.

The plant gets its name from the shape of the flower which resembles a turtle with it’s mouth slightly open.

Image is titled “White Turtlerheads 92520b” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

There is a reason for the open mouth look. In the pre-Columbian era this ensured pollination by bumblebees. The opening is slightly more narrow than a bumblebee’s body. But, only the bumblebees are strong enough and the right size to force their way into the mouth to reach the supply of nectar that pools in the bottom of the flower. European honeybees are not strong enough to force their way in and the large carpenter bees are too large to fit in. So the bumblebees are the sole pollinators for Turtlerheads. If you look closely at tonight’s Feature Image you’ll notice a structure that looks amazingly similar to a human tongue. And the top lip seems to have a single “tooth” hanging down. These are the reproductive organs of course. As the bumblebees wiggle their way into the flower they pick up and transfer huge amounts of pollen.

However, the European honeybees have discovered a hack. They chew their way through the side of the flower and rob the nectar without any pollination. None of research actually says it but I conclude that the same pollinators that are so necessary for the food production of the world are also a limiting factor in the success of the Turtlerheads. So what does it matter. Well, it matters to the Baltimore Checkerspot Butterfly that hosts its eggs almost exclusively on the Turtlerheads. The implications being that without the flower we lose the butterfly. Fortunately, we have many cultivars that are planted simply for beauty by some and specifically for preservation of the Baltimore Checkerspot Butterfly by others.

Image Titled “White Turtlerheads 92520c” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

But what really made these special is because in the mid 90s I helped cruise the timber that was clear cut before the mountain was strip mined down to bare earth. And we’ll soon be coming up on the 30 year mark in the forest regeneration of this mountain. So to find a plant that I have not found in the wild growing so close to an unlikely location gives me great hope for the full restoration of the forest in this area. It takes a long time for nature to reclaim this kind of thing on her own but she can do it. I have been on land that is beautiful rich forest today but was cleared fifty or more years ago. But don’t think that makes me against mining. These men pull light from darkness and supply the carbon that strengthens the steel that modern world is built from. No, I am pro reclaiming that which was mined. We can have the best of both worlds and all it takes is a little thinking and planning. But that will have to be a topic for another day because this post has gotten way larger than I intended. So good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

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I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Orange Sulphur Butterfly On The Spillway

Color Photography, wildlife
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Orange Sulphur Butterfly 92520a” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

The bright Fall sun washes through the spillway at the Battle Run area of Summersville Lake. When I just a little fellow this was a motocross track and I remember my dad racing in the event at least once. For whatever reason they shut the races down and allowed nature to reclaim the landscape. And what a beautiful job she’s doing. The purpose of the spillway of course was never to have a motocross track but to be a place where the water from the lake can go before it endangers the dam. Here in the middle of a hardwood forest is a Coniferous forest of Virginia pine. The creation of the spillway stripped away the biological soil and left the ground with nothing but bare mineral earth. As a pioneer species the pine able to grow in the poor conditions and rebuild the soil in the process. If the worst would happen and the water would flow into the spillway the trees are able to slow down the flow so that the flood is less damaging. The road going down to the old track is still serviceable and so I decided to ease the big blue truck down to the forest edge. I hadn’t actually been as far as the old track in over 30 years and so not knowing what condition the road is in I only drift at idle speed. This is also a place where people can put up a primitive camp and it’s not uncommon for there to be broken glass and other tire hazards. But that also means that there’s time to watch along side the road for Tortoises, chipmunks and whatever small life might call this home. And sure enough a leaf sprung to life and visited some late blooming daisies. Identified by Google as a Orange Sulphur Butterfly it completely ignored the big blue truck as I drifted forward to get a better look.

Image Titled “Orange Sulphur Butterfly 92520b

At one point she folded her wings tightly and gave me her impression of a sundial. The colors of Fall are yellows, oranges and browns. As I have seen fewer of blue butterflies and and more of the yellows and oranges are browns.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Click here to visithttps://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

The First Fall Leaves Bring Childhood Memories

Color Photography, wildlife
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Dogwood In Scarlet 92520” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

The gentle days of Fall see the first of the change. In my part of the Appalachian Mountains we’ll see peak color in about two or three weeks. In a good color year the forest looks as though the mountains were painted to match the sunset. Brilliant leaves fill the streams in a parade of reds,yellows and golds. Among the first to turn are the dogwoods. Almost overnight the lush green leaves turn to velvety red. Small biscuits form on the twigs in promises of a beautiful Spring day when the sleeping forest will burst into bloom. I’ll be watching these buds all winter and waiting for signs of renewal.

Fall tends to bring out the kid in me which isn’t really all that hard. I look at leaves floating in the creek and I’m instantly taken back to carefree days when my brother and I hike down to the creek and race the leaves in the eddies like little boats. A stack of pebbles on the banks served as cannon balls on days that our leaf boats were manned by pirate hunters. We always found a treasure after sinking the leaves. Sometimes broken glass worn smooth by the current served as gemstones and the native painted sandstone pebbles made for good coinage. A few other things that make Fall a great time of to be I kid in mountains is the huge pile of leaves. Those were the days when Evil Knievel was at the highlight of his career. Young boys, bicycles and a pile of leaves and we had the best stunt show on the farm We raced down the dirt road and used an exposed root for a ramp and landed in the leaves bike and all. Even now as I focus my lens on the scarlet Dogwood leaves I have the urge to find a rake and pile as many as I can and with one giant leap land deep into my childhood.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Click here to visithttps://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Contentment On A Cool September Day

Color Photography, wildlife
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Pipevine Swallowtail 90420a” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

The cooling air sweeps through the old hay field gently rocking the tall purple ironweed. It’s little harder to pick up the sweet smell of the bloom on cooler, dryer days but it’s still there. The older pipevine Swallowtail has no difficulty at all in finding her favorite meal as as she softly floats in on the breeze. Her battered wings and loss of dark scales tells me that her journey is nearly over. She’s already deposited her eggs on the pipevine in faith that her multiple broods will emerge in Spring and fill the hills with vibrant colors and joyful airial dances. With profound contentment she feeds. The fluttering of wings reminds me of a puppy wagging it’s tail as I watch through the lens of my camera. The window of my big blue truck provides the perfect cover to enjoy her beautiful routine as she explores each floret in the cluster. She seems to have no fear of me. Even though I’m using the long lens I was able to get close enough that I had to physically back away in order to focus.
With grace she works her way around the bloom lifts herself into the air. Before she departed to her next goal she flew so close to the truck window that I thought she come inside. At the last second she pulled up and circled hood a few times as if saying goodbye before riding the breeze to the far side of the pasture. Perhaps in Spring her children will also pay me a visit.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Click here to visithttps://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.

Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤