Osmeterium, a caterpillar weapon

See in this picture the Osmeterium of the papilio machaon. We found by chance about this fleshy organ when with my brother we wanted to place the caterpillar of the picture on a fennel branch. The caterpillar quickly bended back and opened this antenna that include 'gland cells'. No wonder why it grows that much!.

I know the picture is really bad, but I didn't want to bother the poor caterpillar just that an amateur insect reported could capture a perfect shoot.

Wasp jaws

This wasp is from a different family than the one that made a gorgeous meal out of a poor caterpilar in previous post. But look at it's jaws!. Now I understand why it was so easy for the wasp to grab a pice of machaon's steak and fly avay so quikly.

The same wasp surprised me when it licked a rosemary flower. Where can it hide such huge tonge? and look at it's end, what are this antenna for?

Nature is amazing and we are destroying it all, so fast...

-th

Death in the fennel

I was following a beautiful Caterpillar of papilo machaon. I was fantasizing on finding it's pupa and view life it's butterfly's birth. I even took a high macro picture of one of its tiny spiracle that they use to breath. I was amazed when accidentally I found the osmeterium, the most bizarre defense organ I've eve seen. That Sunday, the osmeterium failed and a wasp that was scrutinizing the fennel up and down ended with my friend's life as well as with my illusions.

Master Free-Koh would bring 'Confucius' on board and talk about the rights of the wasp to exist. In any case, since that day that I took this picture I hate wasps!

-th

Praying mantis cleaning its antenna

Mom found this beauty in the garden. Conscious of my recent passion for taking pictures of insects she kept it in a box so I could take it on stage and run a photo shoot.

I wonder about the black spot they have on the eyes. This spot moves depending were they look at. Does anyone know how this composed eyes work?

-th

What is this?

Is this a painting from Miró?

Who's this mouth with black lips?

Fight between a spider and a wasp

This could had been the picture of my life, a spider chasing a wasp or the other way around. Who knows. Anyway I got two amazing creatures in emotion action. I got the perfect ring with this white flower rich in details... But I failed with the focal plane that doesn't include the wasp. I keep saying to myself, -If at least I had the aperture to f12 instead of f5...

Whaaaa!

Why perfection is so unreachable?

-th

Bombylius Major landing on a flower

This graceful creature is commonly called a bee fly, as it feeds on nectar and pollen. It's color and shape can resemble also a bee. But if you find any, there aren't many but it's not rare. You will see that it's gracious flight it's very different than the 'hurry up' type of flight of a bee. Bombylius flight is that of a weight less nymph that even when lays down seems like it doesn't touch the ground. You have to experience it. Can't be explained.

The picture was taken in the Parc natural del Cadi i Serra del Moixeró

Beetle's love dream

Have you ever dreamed on making love laying over a white smelly flower bed?

Yeah, me and Ju always have fun like beetles for more than 40'.

Err... Uh... 10'?

Star Wars Beetle

This is a very small beetle I haven't yet identified, but the first time I saw it on the screen I thought that was wearing a helmet like the Imperial soldiers in Star Wars. -Lord Wader our army is ready to fight. Where's the next nuclear plant?

Playing with the Flash

This picture was taken in a sunny day.

-What??

-Yes, it was a sunny day but I was using a powerful Macro flash light. The light of the flash was so bright and so close to the insect that the background looks like if the picture was taken at night.

-ah!

To take this picture I had one of the flash bulbs close below the insect and the other one on my camera. Here this nice artificial backlight.

Insect may be a Mylabrissp

Caterpillar under both the sun and my flash

I've been practicing more with the flash, in this picture the flower was totally black. I played with the flash to get a lighting condition that pleased me.

My first butterfly

Here it comes my first butterfly. This beautiful lady is from Rubi.

The picture It's done with a 100mm macro lens together with a 'twin' flash. I really hate taking pictures with artificial light, but the results speak from themselves and I will need to keep on learning the technique of the flash. I hope master Fri-Koh can offer discounts to beginners.

The same image without flash has the backgroung with the same tone as the butterfly. An extra benefit of the flash is the increase of depth of field.

-Leptotes pirithous?? who knows!