Journal

End of Life for a Fluttering Jewel

on
30 May 2010
A solo visit to the Butterfly Hill at Pulau Ubin. Haven’t been shooting butts for quite a while, am not used to creeping up and doing quick focusing. End result? Not too many butts… haha. Most were out of focus while I was trying larger apertures to smoothen the noisy background.

Highlight of the day goes to a Lemon Emigrant that I was chasing. As it landed on a seemingly innocent flower, it appeared to get sucked in and fluttered desperately to escape. There is no escape as the spider zooms in for the kill and makes sure that its prey would flutter no more.


Lesser Grass Blue (Zizina otis) - DSC_9310#1 Top view of a Lesser Grass Blue

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus) - DSC_9316#2 Plain Tiger, liked this flower so I waited for awhile before this butt landed here.

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus) - DSC_9333#3 Another Plain Tiger

Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis vulgaris) - DSC_9343#4 Blue Glassy Tiger under the HOT SUN!

Mottled Emigrant (Catopsilia pyranthe) - DSC_9360#5 Mottled Emigrant, quite faded with part of the wing missing

Leopard (Phalanta phalantha) - DSC_9373#6 Leopard

Peacock Pansy (Junonia almana) - DSC_9383#7 Faded Peacock Pansy.

Praying Mantis Moult - DSC_9524#8 I waited.. and waited.. and waited.. now I look like this – molt of a praying mantis


The following documents a series of shots of a Lemon Emigrant that was caught by a crab spider while nectaring. Price of getting a drink… 🙁


Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9420#9 Crab spider still no where to be seen, but the butt had made it’s last flight

Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9414#10 Trying to get a glimpse of the predator

Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9456#11 Yes getting nearer to the crab spider

Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9465#12 Yet another angle. I have over a hundred shots of this, so this is just a *small* selection. 😛

Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9477#13 The crab spider attacks the butterfly’s “neck” and clings on until it ceases to move

Crab Spider (Thomisidae) preying on Lemon Emigrant (Catopsilla pomona) - DSC_9505#14 Added a macro-filter for a magnified close up

The complete album can be viewed here.
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3 Comments
  1. Reply

    Commander

    31 May 2010

    Hi there,

    Glad to see that Butterfly Hill is attracting more photography enthusiasts!

    #1 is most probably a Lesser Grass Blue. #5 is a Mottled Emigrant. Quite a recently eclosed one from the upperside markings, but somehow its right forewing is bitten off. #6 is a Leopard. Good shots of the spider attack!

    Go to ButterflyCircle's free online checklist to compare your shots if you have difficulty in ID'ing them. http://www.butterflycircle.com/checklist2/

  2. Reply

    Nicky Bay

    31 May 2010

    Thanks for the IDs Khew! I had been checking up on that list but not experienced enough to spot the minute differences. Shall learn as I experiment. 😉

  3. Reply

    Commander

    31 May 2010

    Your shots are definitely improving very quickly. I like your Plain Tiger shot (#2). Nicely exposed and a good composition. 🙂

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NICKY BAY
Singapore

Hi my name is Nicky Bay. I am a macro photographer, instructor and book author, travelling the world to document the vast micro biodiversity that nature has to offer. Follow my updates and discover with me the incredible beauty and science behind our planet's micro creatures!

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