Look at the Pretty Bugs

[Guava Jelly]

(guest staring Mr.Bee)

I took these a few hours ago
:D










(All butterflies are dedicated to my friend buddhamama)

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. Oooh, thanks!

Nice camera skills!

[Guava Jelly]

3. Thank you

:) :hi:

[Tindalos]

2. These are beautiful.

Those butterflies are gorgeous. Great pictures.

[Guava Jelly]

4. Thank you too.

I took several dozen today.
At least 6 different species
:)

[stuntcat]

5. good job good job!

These pictures are each great. I wish I had those yellow sulfur butterflies, I haven't seen a single one yet this year.

[Guava Jelly]

6. Danka

I have seen quite a few of those around here.
Those butterflies are really hard to catch with its wings open. :) :hi:

[Callalily]

7. Just beautiful! And yes, they

are pretty bugs.

[Guava Jelly]

8. I am happy you liked them

:) :hi: And you're right, they are pretty bugs :D

[Fire Walk With Me]

9. Kick for the pretty bugs..

[Guava Jelly]

14. aww..

Thank you :hug:

[Pool Hall Ace]

10. I didn't notice Mr. Bee at first.

He doesn't want to harm any butterflies, does he? :(

All of the photos are just gorgeous! :)

[Guava Jelly]

15. I think Mr. Bees intentions are honorable

I did see the the black butterfly above and the monarch rumble a bit though. :D

[JitterbugPerfume]

11. absolutely lovely

and :hi: Buddhamama where ever you are Everytime I listen to my Dylan CDs I thik of you, and what a cool person you are!

oh yeah--:hi:
GOPSUX

[Guava Jelly]

16. Thank you

Dylan reminds me a lot of her as well.
Next time I talk to her I will tell her you said hello :)
And :hi: back :D

[JitterbugPerfume]

23. she recorded , and sent me some Dylan

that I didn't have a while back . She is a generous and loving person.

[Guava Jelly]

24. Thats buddhamama for ya.

She may be the nicest person I've ever met.
I love me some buddhamama :)

[VenusRising]

12. I bow to your awesomeness!

It's hard as hell to catch them with their wings open.

Fabulous pictures, my friend.

:hi::hug:

:loveya:

[Guava Jelly]

17. I bow before yours first

:D I took several before I could catch a few with open wings.
:hi: :hug: :loveya:

[Writer]

13. Beautiful pictures from a beautiful soul...

:hug:

[Guava Jelly]

18. Takes one to know one

:loveya: :pals:

[mike_c]

19. identifications, if you're interested....

Great pics!

The top photo is a male monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus.

Second pic is harder to be certain about, both because of the poor wing condition and the glare, but my guess is a black morph female eastern tiger swallowtail, Papilio glaucus.

Third pic is most likely a clouded sulfur, Colias philodice.

Fourth and fifth pics are female monarchs.

Disclaimer: IDs from photos rather than specimens are usually best guesses....

[Guava Jelly]

20. You are awesome! Thank you

The black one had a swallowtail.
I am interested on how you sexed the Monarchs?

Here is a bonus.
It is rather blurry.
I didn't notice the Caterpillar until I got home and looked at the picture on my computer.
I think it is a Monarch caterpillar.
I went back and took a better picture

It still came out blurry.

[mike_c]

21. yup, it's a monarch caterpillar, busily sequestering toxins...

...from that Asclepias milkweed.

Sexing monarchs: look at the hind wing venation. Males have relatively thin veins with a pair of stigmata or thickened spots on one of the longitudinal veins. Females have relatively thick hindwing veins without stigmata.

Here's a pic-- top is male hindwings, bottom is female (oops, try this one instead, male on left):

[Guava Jelly]

22. Thank you

I dun learnt somethun today!
Here are a few pictures that i took last year.

[mike_c]

25. IDs....

Top pic is most likely a black swallowtail, I think. Papilio polyxenes.

The second pic is a painted lady, Vanessa cardui or a close relative.

Third is a common buckeye, Junonia coenia or a relative.

The last pic is harder to say for certain because of the shadowed lighting and closed wings, but it's a pierid, most likely one of the Pieris species and probably the cabbage white, Pieris brassicae. I'm a bit confused by the shadow of a dark spot midway along the curve of the forewing though, which looks like the dark bar on the forewing of the pine white, Neophasia menapia. Are you in the west by any chance?

on edit-- checked your profile, that could indeed be a pine white.

[Guava Jelly]

26. The pictures were taken in Kansas City,Ks

Less than about 2 miles tops from Kansas City,Mo
The buckeye is very common here.