(Click any photo to enlarge.)
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| Stripey Guy |
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| Backlit Thistle |
Monarchs have been in short supply this year. On my walks I have seen hundreds of yellow and black swallowtails, but until today, only two monarchs. There has been a decline in their population this year, and experts speculate that it is due to changing weather patterns and over development, which deprives monarchs of the only plant upon which they lay their eggs: the common milkweed. Another theory is that the planting of GMO corn in the Midwest has led to greater use of herbicides, which also kills milkweed. Either way, the beautiful orange butterfly is in trouble.
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| Tagged Monarch at Black Hills |
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| Colorful Kayaks |
I drove today to
Black Hills Regional Park in Montgomery County, because they were having a monarch butterfly weekend. Inside the visitor center they had plastic "environments" for butterflies, in which a number of monarchs had emerged from their chrysalises. They released about thirty of them yesterday, after tagging their wings with little stickers that can be used to track how far they have flown if they are found. I was lucky enough to get one clear enough to read. More information can be found at
Monarch Watch.
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| One More Day! |
After leaving the butterfly garden, I walked along a portion of the lake. The park was packed with people on this holiday weekend. It was hot and sunny, and under any available shade people had set up picnics. Families were playing ball, fishing, or going for a walk. Lots of people were renting kayaks and rowboats to use out on the lake.
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| Dragonfly in the Visitor Center |
After I left the park, I headed straight for Damascus to get a Jimmie Cone. I can blame this completely on a group of young people who walked through the butterfly garden while I was there. They were debating the merits of Jimmie Cones versus soft serve from McDonalds. One of the young men said there was no difference. Ah, but there is. If I remember correctly, most soft serve ice cream is low in butterfat, but Jimmie Cone has one of the highest butterfat contents around. It's that butterfat that gives Jimmie Cones a luscious "mouth feel." I can affirm that it is good.
Tomorrow is the big day. I'm ready. Bring it on!
Click on any photo to enlarge it.
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Forward me by email any receipt for an online donation made to the
Red Cross for
disaster relief, and I will send you a 5x7 print of your choice from
any of my daily photo walks or from my website. Offer good until
September 2, 2013.
Visit my web site:
camscamerashots.zenfolio.com
Follow me on Twitter: @camscamerashots
Email: cam.miller@comcast.net
Cam's rules for the Daily Photo Walk:
- walk every day
- the walk must be in addition to any other planned activity for the day
- post a photo every day
- use whatever camera is easy and convenient for walking comfortably;
always have a backup camera at the ready in case of mishaps (I use the
Nikon Coolpix P7700)
- no weather excuses
- walk only where it is safe to do so
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