A large wasp, busy digging a hole in the mulch and dirt by my flowers. He would disappear into the hole every few seconds and come out carrying a bit of mulch, such as that in his jaws in this photo.
There are unconfirmed reports that I DO have new bird photos. That’s right…actually photographs of feathered creatures, ala the old days when such a thing was commonplace. I haven’t processed those photos yet though, so here’s a few photos from yesterday, just poking around the yard.
I have yet to ever be stung by a wasp or a bee. Not in my entire life. I think I’m pushing my luck. The wasp was a very large one, at least an inch and a half long, who was busy digging a hole in the mulch and dirt by the honeysuckle by our front door. He wasn’t exactly thrilled that I was trying to shoot photos of him. I sat on the front step and at first he would buzz up from the hole and fly around me a bit. But as I sat there he seemed to get used to me. He would disappear into the hole for a second or two and come out with a piece of dirt or mulch, so my strategy was to move ever so slightly closer to him every time he went in the hole. It seemed to work! Before I knew it I was within about a foot of him (the distance you have to be with the macro lens to get a shot like this). I have no idea how aggressive this wasp species actually is, and how likely it is that it would (or could) sting you, but I figure it’s only a matter of time before I come across one that’s not so camera friendly.
The dragonfly was another nice one to get. I haven’t gotten many photos of dragonflies yet with my macro lens. They seem just a bit too skittish to get close enough to. Just like with birds though there always seems to be an exception to the rule. With some bird species, they all just seem too skittish to photograph, but then you run across the one cooperative individual who seems to break the rules. This dragonfly was certainly as cooperative as could be, letting me snap away at close range as much as I wanted.
Some day soon, some actual new bird photos will be posted here! I promise! For now, click on any photo for a larger view.
