Drama on the Lane!

While this is not my best shot today from a technical standpoint, it is the one that tells a story ... a story of suspense, drama, danger and a bit of excitement!

Yesterday I posted the Snowberry Clearwing Moth (Hemaris diffinis) and wrote about an odd behavior I had observed with diffinis attacking the Hummingbird Clearwing (Hemaris thysbee) moths on the buddleia bush.  Well, today I was able to observe the same behavior AND get photos!  Feeling very happy about that.  I chose this shot because it was the split second before contact, and it allows you to really see the difference between the two clearwing species.  Diffinis, on the rigth,  is the attacker, while thysbee is blissfully unaware of the impending attack.  I am posting the next frame in Extras, which shows the contact.

No sightings of the bruin this morning, but Hubs is bound and determined to call the wildlife department and file a report (I suspect they will politely laugh - after all, we live at the edge of the woods in an area with a very large black bear population...)  I enjoyed a bear-free breakfast on the deck, in the company of hummingbirds, before setting out for a short hike in a nearby state park.  The wild bee balm is blooming and there butterflies, dragons, and an assortment of other interesting things.

I've posted four other photos on Flickr, starting here with a moth-eating dragon (the Predation Series).

I think I am getting accustomed to the floater in my right eye - or maybe it's getting better?  Either way, I am not noticing it as much, thank goodness!  

I am not going to see if I can find an ID for a dragon I photographed today - didn't recognize it so now on a quest to figure out what it is.  Part of the fun of nature photography, for me, is learning about the things I'm shooting.  And, it allows me to accumulate vast amounts of relatively useless information... lol

Cheers.
Debbi