Tiny wings

Not all my photos of insects were a great success on my most recent trip to Lake County, but I am pleased that I spotted my very first Lorquin’s admiral. According to Wikipedia, these handsome butterflies are very territorial and sometimes go after larger animals rather aggressively; luckily, this one was in a peaceful mood! On this outing I also […]

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Winging and singing

It’s a tough life as I try to make the most of my handful of days on the Mendocino coast. While I’m having a blast shooting the profusion of wildflowers and spotting new (to me) butterflies, I’m missing out on the chance to just sit and gaze at the ocean for hours at a time. Difficult choices, but I’ll try […]

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We want… a shrubbery

Neither of these two flowering shrubs are native to the areas where I found them; the snowbells originate in China, Korea, and Japan, so I can’t help wondering how this one came to be in bloom above the shores of Folsom Lake. The Pipevine Swallowtails don’t seem to mind the taste of something exotic! Although these shrubs are actually native […]

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Up the hill

We try to drive up to the mountains at least once a year in the summertime; it’s a great way to get out of the house and away from the valley heat, if only for a few hours. I don’t believe we made one of these day trips last year, but a couple of days ago we headed “up the […]

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A Swallowtail story

I got the chance to learn something about the all-too-brief lives of California Pipevine Swallowtails last Friday while hiking along the south fork of the American River at Folsom Lake. It was amazing how these beautiful butterflies were literally everywhere around me, on just about every wildflower. The California Pipevine is a rare subspecies of the Pipevine Swallowtail, found only […]

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Western Tiger Swallowtail

It took me quite a few tries and several trips to the river before I finally managed to capture one of these gorgeous butterflies with my camera. It seemed like the Western Tiger Swallowtails were happily taunting me, always turning up after I had put my camera away, hovering around just out of reach as I fumbled to get my […]

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The gang’s all here

Well, after a quick day trip up to Caples Lake yesterday, I can now report that I know where all the most bloodthirsty mosquitoes are hanging out. I foolishly forgot to take my insect repellant along, and those tiny flying vampires feasted heavily on me. There were other hungry insects along the lake shore as well — but luckily these […]

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