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This species has been overlooked in NC in the past several years. Not easy to ID until Giff Beaton came out with his new field guide. I'm sure we'd been seeing them just didn't look early enough in the season for them. Here are some photos for you. Enjoy.
Male

Female

Mated]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry080420-132720
Yesterday Meg and I were walking along a lake in the Sandhills Gamelands, this lake it known for Diminutive Clubtail, Gomphus diminutus. They were flying in fact the only clubtail seen were Diminutive's. Meg found this larva splitting from it's exoskeleton. I took these photos. I'm not 100 % sure of the ID but considering the length of segment 9 it appears to be a Diminutive.





The darkened wings have me a little stumped as well.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070924-175948
We have Moonflower, Ipomoea alba blooming at night on our back porch. Last night the moon was out and making the giant white flowers glow. Meg notices a very large moth nectaring on them from the kitchen window. So I took out the camera and managed one photo of this very large Pink-spotted Hawkmoth. The moonflower bloom is around 4 1/2 to 5 inches across, so you can see how wide the moth's wingspan is.

A month or so ago, I had one of these hawkmoths banging on the patio door glass. I thought someone was knocking.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070924-061913
On Sepember 22 our yard had a Mourning Cloak, Nymphalis antiopa flying about and getting into the rotten plums we placed in the garden. These beautiful butterflies emerge in may and go into hiding when the weather is hot. They can live up to 10 months. This one looks pretty good for it's age don't you think.

Back when I used to shoot 35mm slide film my Canon A2 could never capture the yellow fringes and brown just right. Digital cameras these days do a pretty good job of getting the color and exposure just right.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070905-123340
Every year I put out my melon rinds to attract butterflies. This year has not been a good year for attracting them. One year I got 22 Red-spotted Purples on one papaya half, that was a real good year.

Anyway you'll likely attract Red-spotted Purples, satyrs, emperors and anglewings like commas and Question Marks. Mourning Cloaks also but only during the cooler months, but not usually in July, August and September.

Here is a photo I took today of a Question Mark, Polygonia interrogationis.



Here in the southeastern US you can also find a Question mark during warm spells during the winter on warm sunny days.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070903-182419
Each year it becomes harder and harder for me and my friends to get new species of damselflies and dragonflies here in central North Carolina. The Smoky Rubyspot is supposed to be common in mpst of NC, but the state parks database until we found these Smoky Rubyspot had not recent records of them.

I'm thinking the reason these are not found very often is the habitat is very hard to get into. These were located at the out pouring of Gum Swamp lake into a black water creek( pocosin). They perch in the sun along the edge of a stong current on branchs overhanging the water. We were able to search about 40 foot of the creek because we've been in such a bad dought, normally the water level would have given us 25% of the area we searched in. Our goal was to find Blackwater Bluets, missed them.

Below is a female Smoky Rubyspot she posed in bad light for 10 minutes, finally after many many ties I got a fairly good image. The white stigma tells us easily it is a female.

Below is a lightly marked male. I could not get any closer than 5-6 foot to the males and they'd just disappear into the pocosin.

This male Smoky Rubyspot has a little more markings than the last one. I did see one that was very heavily marked.
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This one was found in my garden on Apple Mint during the 7th annual Durham Butterfly Count on August 19, 2007. The only other White M Hairstreak found on this count was around the corner from my garden back in 2000.



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We found these Sparkling Jewelwings (Calopteryx dimidiata)in a small black water creek in Richmond County, NC on September 02, 2007. It took lots of patience to get these photos. The reflective surface of thier bodies made using my flash not possible.

Looks like they are posing doesn't it? The white stigma indicates the female.

Below you can see the eyes of the female behind the male staring at the camera lens. Those green lines above the eyes are the leading edge of the wings!


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It is a pit viper you can see the "pit" between the eyes and nose on the below photo. Also note the vertical eye slit which most venomous snakes usually have.
This Copperhead was found by a Latino landscape worker and he brought it out of the woods with a noose around its neck. I took it from him and photographed it and then released it in a safer place than my customers backyard.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070713-193107
This plant is around 10 years old, it was bought at a yard sale in a pot with an Aloe Vera and an Avocado tree in the same pot for $2. Now 10 years later the Avocado tree is 15 foot tall and it supported the cereus flower on July 12, 2007.
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Night Blooming Cereus just opening.

The aroma of this flower is just incredible!

The flower fully opened up.

A close up look at the inside of this flower.

An even closer look, taken with my 180mm macro lens.
The full 12 inch wide flower fully open.
Bring your nose closer can you smell that sweet aroma? I just couldn't help myself by adding so many photos. Read more at Dave's Garden]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070708-172249 Northern Water Snake, Nerodia sipedon. As it swam through the water it created a wake in front of it. Somehow I captured the moment and thought I'd share it with you.

Canon 20D, 180mm macro lens and 550EX flash for fill.]]> http://rlephoto.com/pblog/index.php?entry=entry070708-170852
I found this exuvia in the Butner Gamelands perched on a twig in the middle of a barely used gravel road. It was above a ditch that was much like other ditches I have seen Swamp Darner, Epiaeschna heros laying eggs in the past. I know very well what a Common Green Darner exuvia looks like and there are about the same size and always a light brown. To add a twist to this subject a Cyrano Darner, Nasiaeschna pentacantha was observed flying and patrolling above the same ditch.

Found on 07-07-07 the magic number.
Here is another photo. I've had several people tell me they think this is a Cyrano Darner, Nasiaeschna pentacantha and I believe this photo will help confirm that. Thanks to those who helped with this!
For those of you what are saying to themselves what is a exuvia, it's the discarded casing of a dragonfly or damselfly nymph that is left once it becomes an adult.]]>