
f/5.6, 1/1600 sec., ISO-500, 540 mm focal length equivalent

"What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." -Aldo Leopold

This golden tortoise beetle (not golden during this photo shoot) was found during an insect survey that some WGNSS members participated in at the Litzsinger Road Ecology Center.


A trip to Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary last weekend paid off. I crossed paths with this juvenile Merlin, my first of this season, three different times. In this instance I had my camera prepared. He kindly perched long enough that I could swap for the 2X teleconverter. I think the 2X performed pretty well in this perfect light, but heat distortion was a major problem on this cool but sunny day.
















These special butterflies, endangered or threatened across much of their small range, have their stronghold in the state of Missouri. These images were taken in St. Francis Co., MO.



