Eye Of the Monarch

I never thought I’d get this close to a Monarch butterfly. They are rarely seen in this district, but this season I have seen several. Perhaps a local person has been breeding them and letting them go.

This one was on the ground and not going anywhere. When I offered my hand it climbed on and then resisted being moved onto a leaf. I took heaps of photos of it, surprised that it didn’t fly away. Then I realised that the sudden drop in temperature after days of warm nor’westers might have been the reason. I picked it up again and held it in my palm. After a while it began to move, flexing its wings and generally looking more alive. Then with incredible lightness it rose into the air and flew like a scrap of bright silk on the breeze. In a moment it was gone.

This shot best seen large. There is another shot in extras.