Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Raggedy Butterfly

This pretty butterfly really caught my attention this morning in the garden, as it drifted by.... mainly because it was one of the largest I have seen.




I was able to get a photo when the butterfly lighted on an orange Cactus Zinnia. The wingspan was roughly as large as the zinnia bloom, which is about 4 inches across. Upon closer examination, I could see that one wing (on the right in photo) was quite battered.

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Can anyone identify this butterfly for me?


15 comments:

Carol Michel said...

I can't identify it, but it is pretty. And seeing those wings reminds that it is a touch life out there sometimes!

Gina said...

its really pretty! i think my zinnias are finally going to bloom! im very excited and i hope mine are half as pretty as this one in your photo

O.I.M said...

I can't identify the butterfly. it's nice despite having suffered some obvious trauma. now let's talk about that zinnia. love the colour...and the size of the bloom is huge. It's stunning.
Irena

Anonymous said...

Another outstanding photo. What kind of camera do you have?

We are seeing lots of butterflies now and one was drinking from the hummingbird feeder yesterday.

Melissa said...

That would be a Tiger Swallowtail.

I usually get a few in my cone flowers every summer. Sadly, I haven't seen a single one this year. I've taken some beautiful photos of them in the past. I miss them.

Nabeel said...

wow what a beautiful shot .. well timed and well very natural of course. were you patient while taking this shot? Sorry but dont know the butterfly. Perhaps this would help?

http://pick4.pick.uga.edu/mp/20q?guide=Butterflies

Iowa Gardening Woman said...

I think it is a swallowtail, but whatever it is, it is an outstanding picture!

NM High School Sports News said...

I'd say it is a Tiger Swallowtail as well! It looks as it had a rough outing somewhere! GREAT picture.

Ron

Connie said...

Carol - Yeah, life can be rough sometimes, ha.

Irena - I can save you some seed from the orange cactus zinnia if you send me an email with your address.

Becky - I have an older model Canon A80, but it takes good macro shots.I hope to update soon, but will stick with a Canon.

Me- Thanks for identifying the butterfly!

Nabeel - Thanks for the link, that will be useful. I wasn't patient, as butterflies don't hang around long so I snapped the photo as quickly as I could.

Iowa Gardening Woman - Thanks!

abq-b-fly guy - Thanks for stopping by my blog!

Anonymous said...

i don't know my butterflies but this is a great photo.

Rurality said...

I always get the tiger and the zebra swallowtails mixed up! Not much swallow left in that tail though. :)

LostRoses said...

Great picture, it looks like he escaped the clutches of a bird's beak or two!

Naturegirl said...

I have seen several posts with ~tattered wings~ on butterflies??
Carol is right life is tough for our
dancing butterflies at times! I wonder what causes this as it is the same on the other blogs I've seen?
Nice photo..hugs NG

Ki said...

That's a great shot of the butterfly. I did notice that the wings of the ones I see are also tattered.

Kylee Baumle said...

Poor little butterfly. :-( My blog photo is of a raggedy Viceroy I saw earlier this year.

I MUST grow those cactus zinnias next year! You grow the neatest things!