Monday, January 11, 2010

Macro Monday: Best Shots of 2009

Since we just did our favorite Sunday Stills shots, I thought I'd pick my two best 2009 macro shots from Macro Monday.

This Mottled Tortise Beetle, Deloyala guttata, shot back in September is something I'd never seen before. It's always cool when nature can surprise you in your own backyard. I am still amazed by the 'windshields' of its wings and the metallic designs. I love the textures and details of these.


There are more than 800,000 species of insects on Earth--more than all the other plants and animals combined. Of this great number of insects, nearly half are beetles. When naturalist and entymologist E.O Wilson was once asked what he knew about God, he answered the only thing he knew was that God was inordinately fond of beetles.


My second favorite was this Pipevine Swallowtail, Battus philenor, photographed in November. There is nothing in our landscape so stunning as the blue of this butterfly.

Probably the best thing about these shots were being in the right place at the right moment and having the camera with me!

Visit Macro Monday for more up-close images!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pretty blue butterfly. I think it was Mr. Wilson who said that socialism works -- for ants.

Ed said...

The beetle is one of my favorite shots of the year! That bug is just too cool..:-)

Jill said...

That beetle is fantastic!

Callie Brady said...

These are both beautiful photos, but the photo of the beetle is beautiful.

gtyyup said...

Absolutely love the beetle photo! But the butterfly is really nice too. It pays to keep an eye out for those tiny creatures!

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