This is my contribution to the A Photo a Week Challenge: Insects.
A small selection of photos of insects making more insects.
Common Red Soldier Beetles mating on top of Ragwort flowers.
Silver-studded Blue Butterflies mating on a grass seed head.
Pond Skaters mating on the surface of a garden pond.
This is my first post in what will probably be a new weekly feature, Flora and Fauna Friday.
This Friday I have chosen a pair of Silver-studded Blue Butterflies mating on a grass seed head. Photographed on Prees Heath near Whitchurch, Shropshire, England in the mid 1990s.
The butterflies at Prees Heath are an isolated colony with most Silver-studded Blue colonies being found in Southern England and Wales. They get their common English name from the small, metallic silver spots near the rear edgeof the wing.
A contribution to Becky’s July Squares: Blue photo challenge.
Having only just realised how many birds there are with blue in their common English name it then occurred to me that there’s also a family of butterflies known as the Blues.
So here’s a pair of Silver-studded Blue Butterflies mating on a grass seed head. Photographed on Prees Heath, Shropshire, England.
This is my contribution to Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: 2 Items or the Number Two.
Having rather a long list of photos to pick from I decided to limit myself to eight photos.
Two tree trunks in the snow on the South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.
Two American Herring Gulls taking a shower on the Lake Huron shoreline in Southampton, Ontario, Canada.
Two Silver-studded Blue Butterflies mating, Shropshire, England.
Two Eurasian Blue Tit, the male has just fed the female during incubation, Cheshire, England.
Two Banded Demoiselles, the female is egg laying with the male in the background, Cheshire, England.
Two American Avocets feeding on a slough in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Two Common Redpolls on the South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.
Two Yellow Lady’s Slipper Orchids on the South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.
A pair of Silver-studded Blue Butterflies mating on a grass seed head. The species gets its name from the pale blue, reflective spots on the underside of the wings. The spots (or studs) can be seen on the female in this shot which is the lower butterfly.
Photographed on Prees Heath, Shropshire, England in the mid 1990s. The butterflies on Prees Heath are isolated, the nearest other colony being some distance away in North Wales. In fact this population is the only one found in central and northern England. The species is not found in Scotland.
