"Oh, Henry..."

    Good morning. Today's post is of one of the, if not THE, first sightings of each new season, that being the sweet little Henry's Elfin, sz about 5/8". These photos were all taken on April 5 of last yr betw 1 and 2 o'clock p.m. I chose this lead photo because it shows the natural setting you find them in, and just how hard they are to get an eye on unless they are moving around.

    So many times these little guys are overlooked, for one thing because of their ability to blend so well with their background, and then because they are so early one isn't really expecting them. It's hard to find any color at that time of year, hence the browns and muted backgrounds. The Aromatic Sumac is budding, tho', as seen in the last photo in the comment section. Their 'coming out' can be found around the same time as the Red Bud trees, their host plant. They can be found in, and at the edge of, wooded areas...well worth the effort it takes to spot them. It is literally impossible to get an open-wing capture.

    The lead photo shows off the beautiful blue frosting on the underwing...generally seen when the indiv is so fresh. Btw...all these photos are of the same individual. The diff in coloring and brightness is due to the shadowing of clouds and sun.

    Photo #1 in comment section gives a better showing with less DoF of just how cryptic their patterns are on the wings and how well they blend in with their surroundings.

    SO SORRY...THERE SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE WITH THE PHOTOS IN THE COMMENT SECTION BEING DISTORTED...I'VE TRIED SEVERAL DIFFERENT THINGS TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, BUT TO NO AVAIL. CLICKING ON EACH PHOTO WILL GIVE A PHOTO WITH THE CORRECT PROPORTIONS. AGAIN, I'M SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.

    Large sizes are nice, if time permits.

    Wishing everyone a wonderful "Butterfly Monday"...=-)

    Daisy

    Comments and faves

    1. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      It's sometimes very hard to spot these little visitors unless they make a move...

      </a

      ...on Aromatic Sumac buds...
      "Oh, Henry..."

    2. greekstifado - Yanni (4 months ago | reply)

      Superb butterfly shot....excellent photography!!!! This is one that I've never seen before...very nice!!

    3. Vicki's Nature (4 months ago | reply)

      hi Daisy! Oh Henry really pops on black! All great shots of this rare little guy. I saw my first one last year - on the ground - on dirt and leaves. My shots are awful - I don't think the S5 knew where the dirt ended and the elfin began. And it was down at Callaway Gardens. Have yet to see one around here.

      Hope you're not getting snow. We had a perfect 70o day yesterday - walked into church overcast after another rainy night, and walked out to bluebird skies and billowy clouds! We came home and I put shorts on to walk at the park. It's a bit cooler today but spring is definitely arriving early this year.

    4. Meredith M! (4 months ago | reply)

      What a cute little butterfly and an excellent series. I am impressed that you spotted him. I hope you are well and have a nice week. Thanks for your visit today. :)

    5. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      Thanks, Yanni...=-)

      Thanks, Vicki...it is sometimes hard for the camera to find the subject when they blend so well with the bg...I have the same issue sometimes. Cooler here today, also, but tolerable, for sure...low to mid 40's all wk. I think we are of all wk, so we don't have to be out for anything...=-)

      Thanks, Meredith...great day so far, thanks...wishing the same for you. And your welcome...always a pleasure to visit your 'stream...=-)

    6. pieceoflace (4 months ago | reply)

      Good morning Daisy ...and Happy Butterfly Monday to you. Nice series on this pretty little butterfly and like you say, they're hard to spot. Saw my first ones last season, but I was unable to get any decent pics worth posting like yours. Now that I found an area where these were I'm going to be sure to revisit it and be on the lookout for them this spring.

      Foggy here all morning, but the sun is finally doing it's thing and burning it off.

      I hope you are well and have a truly nice day and week.

    7. pieceoflace (4 months ago | reply)

      PS...I'm going to have to return later to view the pics in the comment section. For some reason they're all "distorted" at the moment.

    8. jrix (4 months ago | reply)

      They are distorted in the comment section so I looked at them individually. Each one is so beautifully captured. This is another one that is listed in our county but has not been spotted here. One can only hope. :o)

    9. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      Thanks, Lacey...glad to know they are in your area. They should be one of the first b'flies one sees in the Spring. Watch for the Red Bud trees to start budding as that is their host plant.

      Don't know what's wrong with the posts in the comment section. They don't show up that way on my laptop...only my pc...weird. I even tried uploading them again to another comment box on my pc and they posted distorted also...=-(

      Thanks, Janet...can't figure out what's wrong with the pics in the comment sec...see above comment.

    10. pieceoflace (4 months ago | reply)

      Still showing distorted Daisy. I don't know what causes this, but I encounter it every once in a while on other people's streams. As far as I'm aware, it's never happened to the photos I've posted in the comment section.

    11. Daylily18 (4 months ago | reply)

      I really like way they blend with the background. Probably harder to spot but very cool series. It won't be long before we can be out there looking for them again.

    12. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      Thanks for ck'ing back, Lacey. I don't know what the issue is, but hopefully it won't happen again...

      Thanks, Lori...looking forward to their return...=-)

    13. ★

      Brian D. Tucker added this photo to his favorites. (4 months ago)

    14. Shawn Wainwright (4 months ago | reply)

      Love these!

    15. PhotonFreak (4 months ago | reply)

      Super shots of a species I only see a couple of each year and have a super hard time getting any photos this nice of them

    16. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      Thanks, Shawn...=-)

      Thanks, Eric...they can be pretty cooperative many times...just not much other than what you see here to photo them on...=-)

    17. pieceoflace (4 months ago | reply)

      Success...all fixed!

    18. Daisy Mai-ling (4 months ago | reply)

      Thanks, Lacey...=-)

    19. LPJC (3 months ago | reply)

      I have never seen one like it. Always a thrill when butterflies reappear at the sstart of a year. A Flickr friend of mine saw 3 today. I am astounded. I would not have expected to see any .

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