{"id":71021,"date":"2020-06-22T05:09:24","date_gmt":"2020-06-22T11:09:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=71021"},"modified":"2023-08-19T03:33:07","modified_gmt":"2023-08-19T09:33:07","slug":"weidemeyers-admiral-butterflies-in-the-wasatch-mountains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/06\/22\/weidemeyers-admiral-butterflies-in-the-wasatch-mountains\/","title":{"rendered":"Weidemeyer’s Admiral Butterflies In The Wasatch Mountains"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Weidemeyer'sWeidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly resting on Gambel’s Oak \u2013 Nikon D500, f8, 1\/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Last week I was able to photograph Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterflies up in the Wasatch Mountains on two consecutive days and the butterflies had me all aflutter. You see, I’ve seen the Weidemeyer’s Admirals before but I’ve never been able to lock focus on them before they’ve flown away.<\/p>\n

\"RestingResting Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly \u2013 Nikon D500, f11, 1\/640, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Seeing the Weidemeyer’s Admirals floating by has always been wonderful but I wanted photos of these striking black and white butterflies too.<\/p>\n

So when I saw one land on a Gambel Oak leaf on Thursday of last week I had to at least try and get a few photos of it. At first the butterfly was so flattened out on the oak leaf that I had trouble photographing more than its face but when it flew to another oak and landed I was finally able to get photos that showed both the top and bottom of its wings.<\/p>\n

I did a little research online and found out on butterfliesandmoths.org<\/span><\/a> that the males of this species often perch on trees and shrubs to watch for receptive females so this Weidemeyer’s Admiral might be a male.<\/p>\n

\"Weidemeyer'sWeidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly next to a gravel road \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

On Friday of last week I was just about to head home when I saw another Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly land on the shoulder of the gravel road road I was traveling on. Even though the sun was getting high, the setting wasn’t very pretty, and the light was bit contrasty these butterflies have evaded me for many years so then to have another chance with this species I felt that I just had to get more photos.<\/p>\n

\"AdultAdult Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly in the Wasatch Mountains \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

This Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly may have been extracting minerals from the surface of the damp gravel road.\u00a0 That butterfly behavior is called “puddling” and many species do it. In this case I can’t be 100% certain that this butterfly was puddling but it sure seemed to me that it was. I was happy that the butterfly landed on the road and that I was there to take images of it.<\/p>\n

I’m delighted that I had these Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterflies in my viewfinder.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good. Stay safe.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Weidemeyer’s Admiral butterfly facts and information:<\/p>\n

Limenitis weidemeyerii<\/em><\/p>\n