Hydrangea Buds
I am starting a flower series over the next few posts. This image is a close-up of the unopened buds of an hydrangea plant.
The original in color was converted to black and white with Lightroom 3. I like the contrast of the lighter buds with the darker leaves.
Murray in My Garden
At about 7 am today, I introduced Murray to my garden flowers. After briefly climbing on to my fingers, I placed him onto an hydrangea.
It was quite cool this morning so Murray was not anxious to fly away just yet. This was a fortunate circumstance, allowing me to take photos of him in various positions.
He made his way to the flower where he rested before venturing out. About 12 hours after his “birth”, Murray went on his way.
Bon Voyage Murray!
Murray on an Hydrangea
Most migration of monarchs take place in the early Fall. So, it is possible that Murray will be the last of his generation up north to mate. His children will travel thousands of miles from the northeast to spend the winter months in a state of semi-hibernation in Mexico.
According to reports, monarchs can travel up to 50 miles a day for a total trip of about 2,000 miles. Their destination is one of five “official” wintering sites in Mexico. Swarms of thousands of butterflies are often seen at these sites (wish I could go to seem them myself). This YouTube video shows one of the migrations sites.
The image below is Murray in full wing. You can easily see the bumps on his inner wing veins that indicates that he is a male. Now he will seek a mate and hopefully produce enough eggs for some to survive to adulthood.
My Murray
Murray Before Emerging
This photo is about 1 hour before Murray poked his head out of his pupa. You can see that the pupa is black ( the stage immediately preceding emergence).
Just after emergence
The second photo was taken just after Murray shed his pupa. If you look carefully, you can see that his wings have not yet straightened (they have a wavy look to them).
Close-up of Murray
The final photo is a close-up of Murray showing how he is still clinging to the transparent pupa with his legs.
Unfortunately, I missed the emergence process. It happened very quickly and I was watching the Mets (win for a change). I checked on him at the bottom of the eighth inning and he was still a chrysalis. By the bottom of the ninth inning he was out! Obviously not a Mets fan.
Monarchs go through four life cycles (egg-caterpillar-pupa-adult) each spring and summer. The average life span of an adult monarch during the first three cycles is 2 to 6 weeks. During the fourth cycle involving migration the adult lives about eight months. L’Chiam to Murray.
Murray the Monarch
Murray emerged as a beautiful monarch butterfly at about 10:15 pm this evening. Here he is drying his wings. You can see the spent pupa (now transparent) hanging from the silk button.
And Murray is indeed a male. See the “bump” on the middle vein of his wing.
Right now Murray is back in his jar while he dries his wings. Very early tomorrow morning, I will let him go. Hopefully, he will pose for one more photo before he departs.
Once he has drunk some nectar, Murray should begin making his way to Mexico for the winter (and to mate). I will have more photos tomorrow.
Early Day 11
Murray continues to develop. His pupa is turning darker. The image on the left is from early in Day 11. You can see that his wings are nearly fully developed and are colored the way the adult monarch will appear.
The second image was taken from the other side of the pupa in the afternoon of Day 11. It shows the other wing. In addition, the pupa is even darker indicating that the adult body is nearly full size.
Hopefully, within the next few hours Murray will emerge.
Late Day 11
If he does not emerge before I go to sleep (late tonight!) I will put him – hanging from his twig – into the large bell jar and cover it with the mesh.
This precaution will keep him protected in the event he does emerge during the night. I would not want him to fly away before I say my goodbyes.
Murray's Wings
It is the end of day 10 and the pupa is darkening. You can clearly see Murray’s wings through the pupa case.
Most often, the adult should begin emerging at day 10. However, Murray can develop in his pupa for a little while longer because the temperature in the house is cool. Soon the pupa will turn much darker (that is his body showing through).
When Murray is ready, the emerging process will not take very long. The pupa will split releasing the adult.
To say that I am excited is an understatement!
What Tour Should We Take?
I am back from our weekend in NYC and Long Island. The photo ops in NYC were good but time was limited though.
This image was made near Times Square of a tour hawker (on the left) and two young tourists. Enhanced with Topaz Adjust 4. Lens was Tamron 17-50mm.
I will have more from NYC coming soon.
Yesterday, we walked Riverside Park along the Hudson River. Took some interesting photos – will have to wait until our return to post.
Today, while the bride-to be and the bride-to-be’s Mom go to the fitting, I will be going to B&H (woo hoo). Also picture taking in the city that never sleeps. Then on to the engagement party.
No obvious changes to Murray at day 6 during his stay as a pupa. No point in taking any photos. However, there was a big change in Murray’s location. Because we will be away, Murray has been relocated to the watchful eyes of my grandchildren (and their parents). Murray, be brave and let us both hope that all goes well!
If Murray is female, the big reveal will occur on day 9 (Sunday). But if Murray is indeed a male, he will become a butterfly on day 10. Hopefully Murray’s caretakers will take pictures of him while I am away and I will include those is his biography! The obvious indicator that Murray is soon to become a butterfly is when the pupa turns from green to black. Then he will shed the pupa and begin to pump fluid into his wings. After the wings dry, he will detach from the pupa case and fly.
At that point in his life cycle, Murray must fly away. We can’t take care of him anymore because he needs nectar and the freedom to migrate to Mexico (hope he has his passport).
Light on a Wall
This image is part of my monochrome series. The original was a color photo taken on the interior wall of the Burden Iron Works HQ. It was converted into a sepia split tone image in Lightroom 3. A heavy vignette was added to focus the viewer’s eyes to the center of the image.
This image will be available as a fine art print when the store has been established. You may use the Contact Us link to indicate your interest now.
