Most butterflies, including the
shy common buckeyes, tend to maintain a safe distance from me and my camera. However, I recently encountered a very different sort of butterfly. This one flew directly towards me -- and only stopped when its wings were brushing my face. It continued to fly around my face and hands for several more seconds before alighting on a nearby leaf. We had reached a stalemate: I wasn't about to move on and neither was the butterfly.
The butterfly was a male red admiral (
Vanessa atalanta) and I had encroached into its territory, a sunny stretch of boardwalk winding through the woods. During the minutes that I stayed to watch it, the red admiral aggressively chased all newcomer butterflies out of its territory. It did not forget about me either, and would occasionally return to tickle me with its wings some more.
 |
| The red admiral briefly opens its wings, revealing a flash of color. |
Explore some more:
Red admiral territorial behavior
No comments:
Post a Comment