butterfly photos

A word a week - face with proboscis of a tiger longwing butterfly

Butterflies: Tiger longwing (Heliconius hecale)

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This is the last post of my series on butterflies. The other butterflies I photographed recently are the orange julia, the paper kite butterfly, the giant owl butterfly, and the postman butterfly.

The tiger longwing butterfly is quite pretty and from the photos I could find on the internet, the patterns on its wings can vary a bit from one butterfly to the other. Even though the colors are overall the same on the inside and outside of the wings, the amount of orange and white featured on each butterfly can change.

I like the butterfly I managed to capture because it really looks like tiger stripes on its wings. The colorful background is a nice to the frame. What’s your favorite butterfly out of the whole series?

Tiger longwing butterfly (Heliconius hecale)

April 11, 2013February 7, 2020 by Milka Pejovic Categories: Animal PhotosTags: butterfly photos, Heliconius hecale, nature photography, photography, photos, photos of butterflies, Tiger longwing butterfly 4 Comments

WordPress weekly photo challenge: From above - Orange julia butterfly (Dryas iulia)

Butterflies: the orange julia (Dryas iulia)

After featuring the paper kite butterfly, the giant owl butterfly, and the postman butterfly, it’s time to make room for the orange julia butterfly (Dryas iulia). And guess what? It’s orange!

I love the color combination between the orange butterfly and the pink flowers that surround him. This little guy know how to look his best! Remember you can click on the photo for a larger view.

April 7, 2013February 7, 2020 by Milka Pejovic Categories: Animal PhotosTags: butterfly photos, Dryas iulia, orange julia butterfly, photography, photos, photos of butterflies 7 Comments

WordPress weekly photo challenge: From above - Postman butterfly (Heliconius Melpomene)

Butterflies: the postman butterfly (Heliconius Melpomene)

If you missed my previous butterfly showcases, take a look at the paper kite butterfly and the giant owl butterfly.

The next butterfly I spotted at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s Butterfly Jungle this week is the postman butterfly (Heliconius Melpomene). I actually knew about this little guy before I saw him because he’s in one of my son’s favorite books on insects. Both the postman caterpillar and the butterfly are poisonous so birds usually leave them alone. The postman caterpillar even features long spikes all over its body, so I’m not sure who would want to eat it anyway. If the book is correct, postman butterflies really like passion flowers. That’s about how much I know about this guy!

Remember you can click on the photo below to see it in a larger format.

April 6, 2013February 7, 2020 by Milka Pejovic Categories: Animal PhotosTags: butterfly photos, Heliconius Melpomene, nature photography, photography, photos, photos of butterflies, postman butterfly, postman caterpillar, San Diego Zoo 2 Comments

Butterflies: the giant owl (Caligo memnon)

Yesterday I shared the photo of a paper kite butterfly, the first good photo I took while at Butterfly Jungle at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park a few days ago. Today I’m sharing the second picture: it’s a giant owl, and once you see the pattern on its wings, you’ll understand why.

The giant owl butterfly is very large and the inside of its wings display a beautiful light metallic blue. Unfortunately the giant owl butterflies I saw that day all stood at rest with their wings closed. It was impossible to catch them in flight because of the amount of people in the enclosure.

Here’s a nice side angle of the giant owl butterfly, featuring some big owl eyes! Remember you can click on the photo to see a larger view.

April 5, 2013February 7, 2020 by Milka Pejovic Categories: Animal Photos, PhotographyTags: butterfly photos, Caligo memnon butterfly, giant owl butterfly, photography, photos, photos of butterflies, San Diego Zoo 4 Comments

Lines and patterns of the paper kite butterfly (Idea Leuconoe)

Butterflies: the paper kite (Idea Leuconoe)

I had the opportunity to visit the Butterfly Jungle at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park a couple of days ago. It features thousands of exotic butterflies in one single enclosure, about 14 different species of them. I didn’t see all of them during my visit and managed to take photos of just a few. If you’ve ever followed a butterfly for a little while, you know they don’t like to like to sit still for too long. When they do, they often close their wings so you can’t see their beautiful patterns on the inside of their wings.

I have a few photos to share so I thought I’d showcase each type of butterfly in individual posts. I hope you enjoy them.

Remember you can click on the photo below for a larger view.

This is the paper kite butterfly, formally known as the Idea Leuconoe. It’s a rather large butterfly and its beautiful patterns are similar on the inside and outside of its wings. This is the only photo I managed to take where none of his body parts were blurry. Busy guy!

I can’t complain though. He was sitting in a great spot, with lots of bright colors all around him, which makes for a nice picture. What do you think?