Monarch butterfly photography

Monarch butterflies are well known for their long distance migration to Mexico. How much do you know about the monarch migration?

This turns out not to be a monarch but a viceroy butterfly. Thank you KevinMHall for your astute observation. Made Explore page for Interestingness

Photography by Kim Smith

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The Monarch is the largest butterfly seen in the British Isles and is also one of our rarest migrants. Known for its ability to travel large distances, the migrations in North America are one of the greatest natural phenomena in the world - where the adult butterflies can migrate from as far north as Canada to the overwintering grounds in Mexico, the west coast of California and Florida.

“Hey Han, look at this photo.” my mom said to me as she walked over. It was a photo of a Monarch Butterfly. I hadn’t seen one all summer. I put my 100-400 lens on, walked over to where she was and took these photos. As I observed it flying from flower to flower I wondered if it would embark on the 2,800 mile journey to Mexico later in the year. Or if it was part of the shorter generation that would only live for two to six weeks. Whatever kind of life it had or has — its crimson little wings…

Another capture of a Monarch Butterfly feeding on a flower at the English Gardens... The trick I find with trying to get these shots of the butterflies is to get them on a flower that will allow you to have a decent background that will not pull your attention away from the main subject.. such as this shot here, where i focused on a flower that stood above the rest and just waited for the Monarch to come to it... which he eventually did.... Please press "L" to see the larger lightbox version…

PRICES MAY VARY. Real Preserved Butterfly Cleared with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Butterfly Utopia has been expertly framing butterflies since 2001! Wingspan: 3.5 inches. Single framed real butterfly in a Riker Mount. Cotton filled hard cardboard frames with a glass top. The butterflies are not glued, they are gently pressed against the glass by the cotton. Riker mounts are not sealed and can be easily opened to extract or reposition the butterflies simply by removing 2-4 pins that are on the…