For two days I’ve tried to capture a decent photo this Swallowtail in my garden. It fluttered around the lemon and orange trees in a frenzy. It just wouldn’t stop long enough for me to get a shot. I thought surely it would stop and rest for a moment to allow me to snap a few close ups. But after about 25 shots yesterday, this is the only one worth saving.
Last year I had much better success with this Gulf Fritillary Butterfly.
Jacqueline D’Elia has a BS in Horticulture from Texas A&M and is the founder of Olivebarn.com, a Houston based green etailer. She writes about her garden here and on her blog Boxed Dirt.
Jacqueline D'Elia Freelance garden writer, photographer, wordpress blog designer, and computer geek. Earned a BS in Horticulture at Texas A&M. She gardens in Houston Texas and enjoys growing organic food in her raised bed garden. You can follow her garden antics on Twitter @JDElia.
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Wow, those photos are all amazing! I never seem to manage anything that’s ready to move, well, that’s the beauty of photographing plants ;->
Thank you. Patience and a good camera seem to help.
Beautiful. She’s laying eggs! Lucky you! They are the most gorgeous caterpillars. They devoured my fennel, but that’s okay because I don’t care for it. Only planted it for the butterflies. Are lemon/orange trees host plants for swallowtails?
Yes they are. Giant Swallowtails hover around the lemon, lime and orange trees I have grouped together in pots. They have laid eggs several times, but the wasps have managed to kill the larvae once they’ve hatched and grown a bit.