Tuesday 8 July 2008

Guess who's come to visit?

There are some insects that I really enjoy and the hummingbird hawk moth is near the top of the list. When you see them close up, they are more like an animated stuffed toy. In a classic case of parallel evolution they, like hummingbirds, can hover, or fly backward or sideways. They feed without touching down.



They do dart around though, so it's not easy to see quite how they do it. Today I thought sod it. You can't get cheaper than digital when it comes to banging off hundreds of shots. So with the sun out and hawk moths much in evidence around the lavender, I put my Canon into manual and click-click mode and banged away hoping that some images would be in focus.

Well, as luck and repetition would have it, some were, including quite a few shots of lavender without moths - well I said they were quick.

The proboscis is surprisingly long. Maybe this keeps them out of harm's way while they feed. I've got a shot of one curling it up between feeds. I hope you enjoy the images as much as I do. As per, click on an image for a larger view.




12 comments:

Lane Mathias said...

What wonderful photos!

The joy of digital photography is taking loads and not worrying about the cost. Great results you got today!:-)

laurie said...

ok, ernest the swan. i did your meme.

laurie said...

(and those are beautiful photographs.)

MYM said...

Excellent photos! Wow.

Is that really an insect? I don't know if I'm fascinated or creeped out. maybe both. :)

Niall & Gaye said...

Wonderful shots. Evolution at its best alright. When I look at photos like these I feel motivated to upgrade my camera into one that actually works and walk around with it to capture beautiful moments as you, mouse, vanilla, JD, baino and www do (all blog peeps).
Gx

PS: As soon as I learn enough French to be able to discuss evolution with you, I will fly over! :)

John said...

lane - thanks. Mixed feelings about digital, which is getting to be the only way to go now. Quick to snap, slow to get anything into your hands and into the album (which may die the death?).

laurie - thanks, saw it, good one!

drowsey - fascinating definitely, creepy, no, too beautiful, you have to admit!

G - I did upgrade to a digital 'true' through the lens SLR (Canon D350). It takes great pix, but people don't believe me when I tell them it doesn't do the rest like sound and video. See you the moment you can say "bonjour".

Anonymous said...

Those are beautiful! And a lovely way to remind myself that it *is* summer somewhere, just not in London.

John said...

ah, mud, I'll not tell you then about the glorious day we had today, forcing one to take frequent refreshing dips and sip frosty beer - because that would be unkind.

Baino said...

Ooh missed this one. They're amazing. I have a Canon 400D and the 'sports' setting is fantastic for these quick clicks, although the macro settings get the detail . . .great photos . . all I get are bees on my Lavender (maybe it's English Lavender rather than French!)

John said...

baino - aren't they just fabulous little creatures? I got a long lens with my 350D, 300mm on max zoom. That means very little depth of field, but if you get the focus right, the background is nice and blurred and so less distracting. It's not a true macro lens, but with the tele you get a detailed image even from a little distance away.

Karen said...

Oh, your pictures are fab.

I was going to capture a drooping foxglove in the garden today (why? you may ask...good question) but it was raining so heavily the thing had disintegrated by the time I got my camera out!

John said...

karen - "a drooping foxglove" - it has a ring; good title for something? I remember someone describing the spine of a book as the smallest advertising hording in the world. That stuck, and I thought if I ever wrote something, the title would have to be *very* catchy.