Posts Tagged: Gulf Fritillaries
They Didn't Get the Memo
They didn't get the memo. Summer is over. Fall is underway. Winter is coming (Dec. 21). But the Gulf Fritillaries (Agraulis vanillae) are still...
Gulf Fritillaries are still flying--and mating and laying eggs--in November. This one is nectaring on Mexican sunflower (Tithonia). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A Gulf Fritillary caterpillar in November. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A tiny Gulf Fritillary egg. The egg is about the size of a sesame seed. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
No Gulf Fritillary will ever eclose from this chrysalis. Note the parasitoid hole. It was a large parasitoid--a big tachinid fly or an ichneumonid or wasp--says Art Shapiro, UC Davis distinguished professor of evolution and ecology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Seconds Count When You're Photographing Butterflies
When you're capturing images of butterflies, seconds count. They're unpredictable. They move from fluttering to fleeting. And just when you're...
A mating pair of Gulf Fritillaries, Agraulis vanillae. Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The mating Gulf Frits react to a breeze. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Synchronized Gulf Fritillaries. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A territorial male Gulf Fritillary is just a blur as it heads over to the mating pair. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Sex. Passion. And a Butterfly and Passiflora
Sex. Passion. Passionflower vine. And by--what else--the "passion butterflies," Gulf Fritillaries (Agraulis vanillae). We came across the...
Gulf Fritillary butterflies (Agraulis vanillae) mating. In the background (at left) is a Gulf Frit caterpillar. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
When they're mating, Gulf Fritillaries look like two different spcies. It's an orangish-reddish butterfly with silver-spangled underwings. It is as spectacular as it is showy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Mating Gulf Fritillary butterflies spreading their wings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Getting a Zing Out of the Zinnias
If you're missing the warmth of summer and watching butterflies flutter around your garden, sometimes it's good to back pedal. We were looking...
A Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) spreads its wings on a yellow zinnia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) lands on a pink zinnia. Good thing the fashion police aren't around.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Insect Art in the Garden
If you look closely, you'll not only see the cycle of life in your garden, but art as the center of life. Take the Gulf Fritillaries. They're a...
The tiny yellow egg of a Gulf Fritillary glows in the early morning sun. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A Gulf Fritillary caterpillar inches away from a passionflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The empty chrysalis of a Gulf Fritillary hangs like a broken chandelier. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Gulf Fritillaries, aka passion butterflies, mating in the passionflower vine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)