Thursday afternoon, I decided to get out of the house for a few and take a short ride down to the Tennessee River to see if there was anything interesting going on. After about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, my workshop just gets a bit too warm and uncomfortable to work in. The first stop was a local boat launch area with lots of native vegetation. This big beautiful dragonfly caught my eye and I headed on over to see if I couldn't get a shot of it.
This dragonfly turned out to be the most cooperative dragonfly I've ever come across. It must have been in need of a rest since it let me photograph it from all angles while fumbling with the settings on my camera. I'm not sure what kind it is~my field guide lists a few that are similar to this one but the descriptions don't match 100%.
The closeup of the wings shows a little bit of wear and tear around the edges.
I like this shot from the back end~it reminds me of an airplane ready to take off into the wild blue yonder.
After about 5 minutes it was tired of me bothering it and it took off to find some peace and quiet.
The second stop along the Tennessee River was a local county park. This passionflower and many more like it was found in an area allowed to grow wild~my favorite kind of place to explore because you never know what kind of interesting flora or fauna will be found. According to the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, "The name relates to the resemblance of the floral parts to aspects of the crucifixion story. The 10 petal-like parts represent the disciples, excluding Peter and Judas, the 5 stamens the wounds Jesus received, the knob-like stigmas the nails, the fringe the crown of thorns." A very interesting bloom, indeed. Another interesting fact about this vine is that its a host plant for
fritillary butterfly caterpillars.
This is the fruit of the passionflower, a passion fruit. Its an edible fruit, this one needs to ripen a bit more. I can't recall if I've ever tried one--there were plenty of these fruits hanging around, hopefully this year I'll get my hands on one and give it a try.
Thursday afternoon, I decided to get out of the house for a few and take a short ride down to the Tennessee River to see if there was anything interesting going on. After about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, my workshop just gets a bit too warm and uncomfortable to work in. The first stop was a local boat launch area with lots of native vegetation. This big beautiful dragonfly caught my eye and I headed on over to see if I couldn't get a shot of it.
This dragonfly turned out to be the most cooperative dragonfly I've ever come across. It must have been in need of a rest since it let me photograph it from all angles while fumbling with the settings on my camera. I'm not sure what kind it is~my field guide lists a few that are similar to this one but the descriptions don't match 100%.
The closeup of the wings shows a little bit of wear and tear around the edges.
I like this shot from the back end~it reminds me of an airplane ready to take off into the wild blue yonder.
After about 5 minutes it was tired of me bothering it and it took off to find some peace and quiet.
The second stop along the Tennessee River was a local county park. This passionflower and many more like it was found in an area allowed to grow wild~my favorite kind of place to explore because you never know what kind of interesting flora or fauna will be found. According to the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, "The name relates to the resemblance of the floral parts to aspects of the crucifixion story. The 10 petal-like parts represent the disciples, excluding Peter and Judas, the 5 stamens the wounds Jesus received, the knob-like stigmas the nails, the fringe the crown of thorns." A very interesting bloom, indeed. Another interesting fact about this vine is that its a host plant for fritillary butterfly caterpillars.
This is the fruit of the passionflower, a passion fruit. Its an edible fruit, this one needs to ripen a bit more. I can't recall if I've ever tried one--there were plenty of these fruits hanging around, hopefully this year I'll get my hands on one and give it a try.
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7 comments:
What beautiful pictures! That really is a lovely flower!
Several of my family members bought spots on the Tennessee River for their campers. It is such a nice area. Whenever I go up to visit I really enjoy going on there. How fun it is so close for you!
Thanks so much--I could walk down to the river if I wanted to--its the walk back uphill that gets me. Its a fun river to play on.
Wow~ what a wonderful photos. They are all great!
BTW, I have my passion flower here. If you're interested, please check this out~
http://www.flickr.com/photos/atelier_de_soyun
Beautiful captures on the dragonfly!
What a wonderful area you live in!
super shots!
wow that dragonfly is amazing!
When I first saw that photo I didnt even think it was real!
What a nice little adventure you had!
beautiful photos! I love the close ups on the dragonfly, what beautiful colors. and i have never seen a passionflower before. cool! :)
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