Monarch Life Cycle

[Photobiologist]

I went to the All-a-Flutter Butterfly Farm in High Point, NC on Saturday.

I THOUGHT that I was taking a picture of a monarch butterfly and caterpillar. After I loaded the image, I noticed the white egg on the lower left-hand leaf (and a partial one up under the adult). I thought, "Too bad there wasn't a chrysalis in this picture." And now, thanks to Photoshop, there is! So now this image is both captive AND composite.

The egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, & adult butterfly are arranged so that arrows could be drawn from one to another in a circle illustrating the monarch's life cycle. I couldn't have arranged that if I had tried!!!

Nikon D70, Lester A. Dine 105 mm macro, ~f/16ish, 1/60th second, ISO 200, tripod, cropped to about 70% of orginal, chrysalis added from another image. Captives and composite.

[mrsisu]

Interesting shot and love the life cycle even if PS added one phase. How big a place is the butterfly barn/farm. Lots of action?

[Photobiologist]

It isn't very big (total farm 23 acres) with publicly accessible area about 4 acres. They have a small amphitheater and do a really good butterfly education talk - complete with butterfly jokes and kid involvement. It really helps people (big people too) remember about butterfly anatomy, life history, & the differences between moths & butterflies.

Right now they have one flight house (about 20 feet by 60 feet) that is publicly accessible. It has some flowers, some milkweed, some monarch butterflies (in all life stages). It is hard to set up with a tripod in there with a group. It would be easier with a photo group - which could be arranged.

For that small a place, there seemed to be a lot of action to me. I got several hundred shutter actuations and a good handful of keepers. Some are technically better than the one I've posted (but none of them had as many life cycle stages...). It would be a really good place to go with kids to combine kid fun and photography.

[rpk717]

Robert, I really like you were able to show the entire life cycle in a single frame. Sounds like a great place for an outing.

[BobWilliams]

What other living creature better illustrates in its life cycle the whole concept of metamorphosis? The stuff of poets and preachers.

[wetbelly]

This picture really is worth a thousand words. I love the story you have created. :)