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Friday, September 16, 2011

Migrating Monarch Butterflies

 

 

IMG_6902 Monarch Caterpiller

"There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly."   - Richard Buckminster Fuller

 

 

 

IMG_6979 Monach Butterfly on Goldenrod

Butterflies are self propelled flowers."
- R.H. Heinlein

 

 

 

IMG_2302 Monarch Butterfly

We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty."
- Maya Angelou

 

 

 

IMG_6931 Monarch Butterfly 3x4 

 

 

The Cocoon and The Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.
One day a small opening appeared, he sat and
watched the butterfly for several hours as it
struggled to force its body through that little
hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress.
It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it
could and it could go no farther.
Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so
he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the
remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily.
But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled
wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly
because he expected that, at any moment, the
wings would enlarge and expand to be able to
support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent
the rest of its life crawling around with a
swollen body and shriveled wings.
It never was able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not
understand was that the restricting cocoon and
the struggle required for the butterfly to get
through the tiny opening were God's way of
forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly
into its wings so that it would be ready for
flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need
in our life. If God allowed us to go through
our life without any obstacles, it would cripple
us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been.
And we could never fly.
Author Unknown

 

 

 

IMG_6954 Monarch Butterfly 1

 

 

 

At the end of Aug. and into September, the Monarch Butterflies gather at Presqu’ile Provincial Park, which is on the shores of Northern Lake Ontario, as they get ready for the long journey  of  migration to Central Mexico.

There is an association called, “Friends of the Park”. These Naturalist catch, tag and release these butterflies so they can keep track of them. 

 

 

 

IMG_6919 Tagging

 

 

 

I was fortunate enough to be able to witness how they capture and tag the butterflies. I did not see them arrive in clusters, but I was able to find a few and photograph them after they had been tagged and then released. These are a few of the photos I took that day. I hope you enjoy them.

 

 

 

IMG_2323 Tagged Butterfly

 

 

 

I have heard it said, that if a butterfly lands on you, it will bring you good luck. I had one land on my shoulder a few years ago. I must say, I don’t believe in luck, but I was truly Blessed now and then as I photographed, and admired these Beautiful creatures created by God.

 

 

 

IMG_2336 The Landing

I will end with this photo which I simply call

“The Landing”

 

 

Take care one and all. Have a great day!

Love and Care, Dianne :)

 P.S  For many of us it is the last weekend of the summer , so have a “Good One”. No matter what the Season, have a Blessed Weekend to each and every one of you :)

24 comments:

  1. Thank you for the excellent accompanying text. Also, I did not believe, as nature has equipped. The pictures are beautiful. Very well done. Peter.

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  2. Ottimo lavoro Dianne!
    have a wonderful weekend
    ciao
    Matteo

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  3. Hi Dianne,

    I love butterflies, thank you for this post and these pictures.

    Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

    Hugs Nita.

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  4. Dianne, such beautiful pictures of the butterflies! Enjoyed reading your words & reminders that trials & struggles are what grows us. Have a wonderful weekend!
    ~Karen

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  5. Each shot is a beauty.I didn't know a butterfly could be tagged. That is very cool.

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  6. This was a fascinating post. Butterflies are so fragile looking,yet,God has given them the ability to fly great distances.What an awesome God we serve!

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  7. Beautiful photos and the words to accompany them are perfect!

    Hugs,
    Beth

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  8. I love butterflies,when I was younger age it always make me think that caterpillar became the beautiful butterflies??
    When the next time I goes to the park and make sure stay in the next flowers and I don't mind the Butterfly land on my shoulder or even head.
    Thank you for sharing to us,
    Have a wonderful weekend,
    Michiko

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  9. The Monarch is the most beautiful that I have photographed, you are the host of these lovely butterflies.

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  10. Oh Diane, the Monarch is stunning!!!!!!!!! Since I am among nature for three weeks your posts sure hits where my heart is now. Lovely, what lens did you use for this photograph? Your photos are always so enlightening, Thank you I learn so much from your blog.

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  11. Absolutely delightful post Dianne! I love Monarchs...they seem well named...regal yet delicate. This was quite the year for butterflies but not Monarchs in particular. I see fall coming in and dire predictions already for a nasty La Nina winter. Our plans for our trip the Philippines has been curtailed for now so it looks like this will be an lesson in endurance. God bless you my friend.

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  12. Wonderful photos, such gorgeous creatures! I have noticed where I live that there are not many around now already, I suppose it is autumn creeping towards us. Hope you are having a good weekend :)

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  13. Fantastic shots Dianne I watched a programe about these Little guys it was truly amazing. I noticed three little cocoons under the eve's of my house a few weeks ago. They turned out to be Peacock butterflies. Beautiful creatures , still have a few flying around I noticed two days ago. Have a lovely week hugs Sheila and Wile-e :) xx

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  14. Fantastic photos Dianne. They really are one of Gods wonders..and I too have heard about that good luck. My daughter must have it too. Loved the poem. Wonder who wrote it. Lovely.
    Loved each and every photo. So glad you got to see them and capture each of these.
    Have a wonderful night and week ahead.
    Hugs

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  15. These are beautiful photos...what an amazing journey these butterflies make! We have participated in tagging them, but my dream would be to see a roost sometime!

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  16. Thank you all so very much for stopping by and leaving your comments. Hope you all have a wonderful week ahead. :)

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  17. Yes that would be something to see Anita. Hopefully one day we will witness such an event.

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  18. Thank you Lisa. It was a dream come true for me to be able to photograph these Beautiful Butterflies. Yes it would be interesting to know who wrote this poem. Someone who had a lot of insight, and wisdom. :)

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  19. Janie, in answer to your question. I used a Tamron 90mm macro lens for some of the photos, and I also used a Canon 55-250 zoom lens for some of the pictures I took of the butterflies.

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  20. I have always admired the strange but beautiful colors butterflies have.. Great photos & great blog Dianne!

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  21. Dianne, I love all these photos and the wonderful quotes you added to them. When you said they tagged them, I thought how could that be possible. But I see it is. Thank you for sharing this and the beauty of the butterfly that you captured.

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  22. Love the idea of butterflies as self-propelling flowers.
    The photographs are gorgeous.
    Your eye was truly gifted.

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    Replies
    1. Hello, it's Happy Flower at

      http://happyflowerwordzoo002.wordpress.com

      For some reason wp id not getting through tonight.
      Big Smiles

      Delete
    2. Thank you Happy Flower. Glad you got through, and thanks for letting me know it was you, and leaving your nice comment. Hope you are having a Good Day!. :)

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