Bee fly and rough blazing star

Rough blazing star is a spectacular flower of the tallgrass prairies. It blooms late in the growing season--usually in late August or into September. In warm weather it is a very good butterfly flower, and will attract a wide variety and a large number of butterflies. However, when I took this picture, the weather was not good for butterflies.

Butterflies need heat and/or sunshine in order to fly. This was taken on an unseasonably cool, cloudy day.

The primary insects I observed on the rough blazing stars this day were these large bee flies. There were two or three on every plant. I took several photographs but my favorite one was this one, which happened quite by accident. I like it because it shows the motion of the fly.

Of course, just because I like this photograph doesn't mean I think it is good. I have seen the work of Steven J. Dalton and John Brakenbury. Comparing my work to theirs is like watching Gary Coleman playing Michael Jordan one on one in basketball.

If you haven't seen their work you owe it to yourself. You will see photographs of butterflies which show the wings curved and scales which have fallen off trailing behind. Absolutely breathtaking photography! Having said that, I still like this picture.

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