Observations

Classic Iris at peak bloom. Botanical garden, June, 2015 (Please view in LightBox or in larger sizes for best effect.)

After a flash thunderstorm, this skittish fellow who normally refuses to pose for pictures, clings to the grasses in the wind to dry its wings. Nature preserve, June, 2015 Please view in LightBox or larger sizes for best effect.) Cisseps fulvicollis is a day-flying narrow-winged tiger moth. It is small to medium size (FW length 15 - 21 mm) with a relative large body for the size of its elongate wings. The head and collar are light orange. The thorax is brown gray and the abdomen is slightly metallic blue-black. The forewings are warm brownish gray and the hindwings are black peripherally and translucent pale gray-white with black veins centrally. The black antennae are bipectinate, slightly wider in males than in females. This moth resembles moths of the day-flying genus Ctenucha. It can be told from both of the species of this genus found in North America by the combination of orange collar, black tegulae, and pale central hindwings.

A small group of does hugging the edges of a wood clearing. This was the most adventurous of the bunch. Nature preserve, April, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or larger sizes for best effect.)

The richness contained in these blooms lasts mere days, but while profuse in its nutrients and aroma, fully intoxicates a wide range of insects. Nature preserve, July, 2015 (Please view in Lightroom or in larger sizes for best effect) Bumblebees (genus Bombus) Common eastern bumblebee These familiar insects are stocky, fuzzy, and yellow (or orange) and black. The queen bumblebee typically chooses a nest site that is on or under the ground. She lays her eggs, and 10 days later a relatively small number of worker bees is born. These workers gather nectar and pollen, make honey, and care for the nest and young. In the late summer, drones (males) and queens are born, and they mate. Most of the colony dies with the onset of cold weather, but the queens overwinter in leaf litter.

Sino-Siberian Iris, Beardless Iris Private estate gardens, June, 2015 (Please view in Lightroom or in larger sizes for best effect) Herbaceous perennial with creeping rhizomes. Leaves linear and grayish green, to 70 cm long. Flowering stems 25–50 cm, hollow. Flowers reddish violet to very dark violet, almost velvety black, 6–9 cm in diameter, outer tepals usually with golden yellow stripes. Deliciously fragrant. Flowers in June to July. Iris chrysographes is easily cultivated and requires a fertile soil which does not dry out during the growth period. Grow in full sun. Propagation by seeds or division in the spring. Cultivars must be divided. For cooler areas plants do best if planted in the spring. Some cultivars are grown, mainly "black" flowered clones under names as 'Black Beauty', 'Black Knight',] 'Black' (syn. 'Black Form', an invalid name), 'Ellenbank Nightshade', 'Stjerneskud' and 'Kew Black'. 'Rubella' is purplish violet. Iris chrysographes has been used in a number of hybrids with other species. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

Music festival, September, 2014 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Oak tree leaves, days old, dancing in the spring breeze. Nature preserve, May, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Oak tree leaves, days old, dancing in the spring breeze. Nature preserve, May, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Male mantis, resenting the intruder. Nature preserve, August, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.)

Coopers Hawk - Nature preserve, November, 2014. (Please view in Lighbox or larger sizes for best effect.)

Music festival, September, 2014 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Rapt music fans and smart phone photographer. Rock festival, September, 2010 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Dusk falls as I flee, alone, into the vastness of Northern Ontario for a little peace of mind. Hwy 17 - heading north from Sault Ste. Marie. September, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox for best effect.)

Fiery Skippers feeding on Milkweed flowers. Nature preserve, June, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.) The Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus) is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae and are approximately 1 inch (2.5 cm) long. The males are orange or yellow with black spots while the females are dark brown with orange or yellow spots. The caterpillars are greenish pink with a black head. The caterpillars are often considered pests and can feed on bermudagrass, creeping bentgrass, and St. Augustine grass. Fiery skippers, along with all other species of skippers and skipperlings, can hold their wings in "triangle" shape. The forewings are held upright, and the hindwings are folded flat. This position is thought to better absorb the sun's rays. The fiery Skipper lives in Northern America.

Scrapes and Scars to prove it, Sean pushes his hard-earned skills at competition. Sports park, September, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.)

A favorite trail - nature preserve, May, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.)

The last night before the killer frost. Nature preserve, October, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.)

Mantis - Hunting female. This one was amazingly aggressive. I observed and photographed her for a long time that day. Nature preserve - August, 2015 (Please view in Lightbox or in larger sizes for best effect.) Larger sizes best