Bugs and Roses

If you’ve worked with tools as long as I have, you’ve probably noticed that the tools you own play a large part in determining not only what you’re able to do, but also what you’re apt to do. Since I bought my Canon 100mm macro lens I can’t go to the Pt Defiance Garden without also focusing on the insects, which, in turn, has made me more aware of various parts of plants.

For instance, I couldn’t help but notice how many of these small butterflies/moths were around.

Skipper

Curious whether it was a butterfly or a moth, I discovered it’s called a “Skipper” and it’s one of those insects which defies classification since it shares characteristics with both the butterfly and moth family.

I tended to ignore the bumblebees I posted in the earlier entry, but I think this might be the unidentified insect I posted at the same time though I didn’t realize it when I took the picture.

insect

I wonder if there are flies/bees that are in the same category as the Skipper?

Sometimes when you look real closely at nature you find things you don’t expect, like this shot:

 Spider

Of course, the shot also exposes one of the serious limitations of a macro lens: sometimes it’s impossible to keep everything in focus. Though I kind of liked the mystery of what the spider itself looked like. It’s clear that it would present a real threat to all those insects pollinating the roses.

Nor could I resist the temptation to shoot this miniature rose,

miniature rose

which, due to the magic of the macro lens looks exactly like a full-size rose, though in reality it was slightly larger than my thumb.

And, looking around, I couldn’t resist the temptation of trying to capture the center of this flower.

almost a mandala within in a mandala.