Gulf Fritillary - July 10, 2008

This photo of a Gulf Fritillary is my reminder to always have my camera with me when I leave the house. The Gulf Fritillary is a southern species that rarely ventures this far north. I was in my vegetable garden when I noticed an oddly orangish butterfly heading across the field towards me. I grabbed my camera out of its holster and powered it up. By the time the butterfly got to the garden, I had zoomed the lens out as far as it would go and was ready to take a picture. The butterfly dropped down into a clump of Butterflyweed about 40 feet from me. I took this shot as soon as I was close enough to see my subject. It’s not the best of shots, but it is enough to document what I saw. A second later the Gulf Fritillary was back in the air and continuing on its journey. Had I not had the camera with me, I would have missed documenting this rarity. My rule is to have a camera hanging from my belt whenever I leave the house. I may still miss the shot, but it won’t be because I didn’t have a camera.

NOTE: I’m away on a ten day excursion and have left the computer behind. So as not to have a ten day gap in posts, I’ve selected some of my favorite pictures from my pre-blogging days and set them up to automatically post one each day until I return. They may not be the best photo quality, but each identifies something of significance to me and to Blue Jay Barrens. I’ll continue my practice of current posts on July 27, 2011.