Butterfly photography has been one of the best photo projects that I have ever undertaken. Waiting to photograph butterflies tested the limits of my patience. But the my efforts were well rewarded in the shots that I was able to get. I made it a point to do so with the least expense, so I concentrated on local gardens, local nurseries, botanical gardens and my backyard.
I had done some earlier research to identify the best plants to attract butterflies and several species were readily available in my hometown of Miami Florida. One interesting plant was milkweed (Asclepias family) a hardy perennial. This particular plant is commonly available at many plant nurseries and it is a favorite of the monarch butterfly as well as other species and its seed pods are easily collected for future plantings. Both milkweed and monarchs are common to most of the south but do your own research into plants and species common to your region.
Other useful plants:
Other butterfly plants suggestions are: indian Hemp (Apocynum cannabinum) Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) Golden Rod (Solidago sp) and Red Clover (Trifolium pratense).
Strongly suggested is the fire bush (Hamelia patens) not only does it attract butterflies, bees and nectar loving insects, but it's a favorite of hummingbirds.
Monarchs not only uses the flowers of the milkweed for nectar, but als uses it as a host plant for their eggs. The plant's sap gives the monarch a chemical protection, and most birds have learned to recognize that eating them is poisonous or a least distasteful. Monarchs lose this chemical protection at adulthood, but it seems that birds won't take the risk..
Plant the milkweed and other nectar plants in bunches for a stronger attracting effect. To photograph butterflies use a lens in the range of 100mm to 200mm,. consider using fill in flash or discretely adding reflectors to bounce light back into your subject. Do your photography early in the morning when the temperature remains on the cool side. The butterflies will tend to be more at ease and stay in place longer.
Other species that regularly feed on milkweed are the common yellow swallowtail (Papolonidae) and the zebra swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus).
Photograph these butterflies while feeding, laying eggs and mating. Also look for their colorful caterpillars as they feed. Once the caterpillars are ready to pupae, they will form a type of J shape and can be removed to a ventilated enclosure to see the metamorphosis. Do not disturb the caterpillars before they naturally start to pupate, doing so will most likely kill them by not being allowed to reach maturity.
Once they morph into a monarch butterfly, they can easily be handled for a few minutes until they warm up and take flight. This is an easy school project for your kids to showcase a biology project or insect life cycle.
Try to take macro shots to show texture, colors and patterns in both the butterfly and its caterpillars, as well as to include some of the environment.
Note: when you are ready to release a newly hatched monarch female, watch it carefully if there are other monarchs in the area as they will mate immediately after birth and can this can last for several hours.
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