So while looking into the mir-
ror at one
self,
one asks, “Did
I re-
member
to brush my
teeth this morning?”
Well then, “Oh, that’s
right! I don’t have any
teeth; I have a proboscis.”
Proboscises suck,
and it’s not that you “have them”;
they are merely part of what you are…
as are butterflies
and things to reflect on.
[Note: Butterflies use their long tube-like proboscises to suck nutritious nectar out of flowers. They have a symbiotic relationship with flowers in that they help pollinate them by going from one flower to another. Note the yellow pollen sticking to the “face” of this Painted Lady Butterfly.]
In the Mirror … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Tom's Nature-up-close Photography and Mindfulness Blog 
Made me smile.
Mission accomplished! 🙂
Hi Tom, This is cool! Look forward to more close ups!!!
Thank you, Linda! I appreciate that! 🙂
Terrific photo!
Thank you, Belinda! I’m so glad that she was cooperative. (At first, she wasn’t and flew away a bit.) 🙂
Wonderful macro picture! 😀
Thanks, John!
Maybe it wasn’t macro… maybe it was just a really huge butterfly. Tee-hee 🙂
Ha ha ha!
Glad you enjoyed it, Eilene! 🙂
Awesome! Never cease to amaze me. 😊😊
Thank you much, Marie! Now go brush your teeth. 🙂
Haha..lol. Great advice😁
My photos “suck” compared to yours…lol. Good one, Tom.
Don’t compare! 🙂
You need to give yourself more credit, Michael; your recent railroad track photo is still fondly in my mind. 🙂
Thanks, encouragement is always welcome!
Great shot, Tom!
Thank you, Sandy. She “allowed” me to photograph her! 🙂
Love it and the picture is good too.
Very nice of her!
Thank you much, Francis! 🙂
I see fewer butterflies in recent years something is missing without them in large numbers, fantastic close-up photograph Tom.
Thank you, Andy, and yes, there are fewer butterflies here in Illinois too, and just over the last few years. We live on a river and butterflies would come in large groups to dine on the mineral salts on the bank. Not so much anymore. It’s very sad. And the current U.S. administration is cutting environmental regulations like crazy.
I agree with you both – there are so few of these beautiful creatures now. Now we have stinkbugs overtaking the air.
I’ve not seen a single hummer this year. This close-up of the butterfly makes it look like it has gold glitter on it – well it is a girly-girl butterfly after all!
I love this picture! The butterfly almost looks cross-eyed! I had a fun thing happen to me at Council Point Park this morning. I was walking along and another walker said to me “did you know you have a butterfly sitting on your shoulder?” No, I did not as it was toward my back but I craned my neck and sure enough, there it was, perched there on my white tee-shirt sleeve. The walker had moved on and I thought about asking her to take a picture but I figured the butterfly would just fly away in a few seconds, so I just let it go and didn’t ask anyone. But that Red Admiral stayed there on my shoulder for about a mile and a half before it finally took off. I’ve seen people post pictures on social media of a butterfly that lands on them when they visit a butterfly exhibit, but not usually out in the open, and especially unlikely at this Park, where the butterflies are few and far between, even though there is a milkweed plant growing there. It is mostly Cabbage Whites, and the occasional Tiger Swallowtail on the thistles, but that’s about it. I had a great experience last Fall when a flurry of Monarchs flew by me, enroute to their Winter destination. It happened so fast that I thought “did these Monarchs just blitz by me?” I got a pic of the tail end of them but that was it.
Like i mentioned to Andy, i (too) feel that there are less butterflies these days. So cool about the Red Admiral staying on your shoulder! 🙂 Red Admirals are very gregarious creatures. They, in our backyard, would sometimes land on us and remain on us for a good time. I’m sure that some of my older blog pictures are of them upon us. I see a lot of milkweed plants but no caterpillars.
Here we go:
That is just amazing Tom! I am like you and got the biggest kick out of it perching there and hanging on, exploring my shoulder a little while going for a free ride. 🙂 It sure is beautiful – thank you for sharing the photo. I used to have them in my backyard when I had the Coneflowers – they loved them, but the Polar Vortex in 2014 wiped out the Coneflowers and I didn’t replenish them (I lost many plants and a few bushes that year). Such a delight.
It sure is a treat when they decide to become friends with you! A priceless, magical time! 🙂
Nice Tom! Love it! 🙂 Last week I scheduled a post that published today which was on the same wave link of mirrored images. Great minds think alike eh??? 😀
Yes, great minds think alike. Let’s take a bow in front of the mirror! 🙂
Beautiful capture!
She “let me” take this photo. Much of the credit goes to her. 🙂
Amazing close-up!
Like i said to Sabine, she (i.e., the butterfly) “let me” take this photo. Much of the credit should go to her. 🙂
Looks like there is hair in the eyeball, though I guess that is the texture in the iris
When I looked at your photo, I saw something I’ve never seen before. It looks like the proboscis is divided into two parts. I went looking, and sure enough: that’s how those little gems are structured. Here’s one of the simple-but-not-too-simple explanations I found. So interesting, and a wonderful photo.
We were out all day today, Linda, so i am late with reading this. Very interesting about the physiological structure of the proboscis! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Nice one