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| Western Tiger Swallowtail feeding on Purple sage (Salvia leucophylla) |
National
Pollinator Week (the 3rd week in June) celebrates the importance of
pollinators for all life. To learn
more about their key role see: http://mother-natures-backyard.blogspot.com/2013/06/life-friendly-gardening-planning-for.html.
Some
pollinators are well-known and well-studied.
But surprisingly little is known about many insect pollinators. The number of entomologists (people who
study insects) is limited; and the estimated number of insect species (at least
2 million world-wide) is staggering. So it’s understandable that many insect species
haven’t even been discovered, much less extensively studied.
Many
locally important pollinators are not currently well-characterized. In fact, one aim of National Pollinator Week
is to increase interest and basic research on native pollinators. You can
do your part, either by contributing money (http://www.pollinator.org/)
or by actively observing and reporting on pollinators.
Fortunately,
insects can be studied in your own backyard or in the wild. If your garden provides habitat, the pollinators
will come. You don’t need a lot of fancy
equipment – just curiosity, patience and a few basic tools. You may even discover a new species – or
something about an insect’s behavior that was previously unknown. And you can
do this without wasting precious gas and time traveling to some exotic locale!
One
important tool for observing insects is a camera. Many insects are active; it’s
difficult/impossible to see details like color, wing venation, antenna shape, etc.
while they are in motion. Photographs allow you to study insects at your
leisure. And they provide a whole new
world of information on what insects look like and how they behave. We can’t recommend photographing insects enough!
The
camera doesn’t have to be fancy; in fact, many cell phones take excellent
insect photographs. Insects are small, active creatures and they may
be frightened by humans. We find that a
camera with a telephoto lens (or zoom capabilities) is essential for
photographing many insects. If you’re
interested in insect behavior, a camera with video capabilities can be an
invaluable tool.
Here
are a few suggestions for photographing insects:
·
Observe
your garden to see what plants attract insects.
You’ll want to focus your attention on these plants;
·
If
possible, place a chair or seat 2-6 feet away from the pollinator plant (or
within good photography range for your camera). You may even want to provide permanent
seating near your best plants. Let the
insects get used to the seat before you try photographing them (anything new
can be disturbing to wild animals);
·
Choose
a warm, sunny, calm (non-windy) day – pollinator insects are most active then. Many pollinators are most active from April
to October in S. California;
·
Wear
neutral-colored clothing; browns, blues, etc.
·
Assemble
your photographic equipment (be sure that your batteries are charged).
·
We
find photographing insects with a tripod to be challenging. If you need to steady your camera, consider
using a monopod (single leg) which provides better maneuverability. Alternatively, steady your camera with arms
resting on your knees; or rest the camera on the back/arm of your chair.
·
Approach
the site slowly. Many insects will move off, even if you approach slowly (let’s
face it: you’re a big, scary creature!).
Sit quietly until the insects return.
·
Observe
the insects you plan to photograph. What
is their feeding behavior (do they hover or crawl)? How long do they visit a flower before moving
to the next? Can you predict where they
will move? The more you know about an
insect’s behavior the better your photographs will be.
·
If
you have a digital camera/cell phone, take lots of pictures. You can easily delete the poor ones; and the
more pictures you take, the greater likelihood of capturing some truly great
shots.
·
Because
insects are active, we prefer using the autofocus option for most insect
photographs. The exceptions are larger,
more stationary insects which allow the time needed to manually focus. If manually focusing, use a higher f-stop
(16 or higher, if you have the option); this will increase the areas of the
picture that are in focus (increases depth of field).
·
Some
situations are conducive to close-up photography. Cool mornings (insects move more slowly) and
some larger, slower-moving insects allow you to move in very close for a
picture. If your camera has a ‘close-up’
or ‘macro’ function (or a macro lens) you can sometimes take stunning close-up
images. You’ll need to be calm and
patient. And do respect the insects
‘space’; back off if an insect appears agitated, particularly if s/he has a
stinger!
·
Review
your photographs soon after taking them. We often need several photo sessions
to get good pictures of a species. Many
insects are seasonal, so get out again soon if you need additional pictures of
a species.
·
Look
critically at your photos to see what worked and what didn’t. Learn from your mistakes.
·
Try to put a name with the insects you photograph. To get started, a good
introduction to California insects is California Insects (California Natural History
Guides) by Jerry Powell & Charles
Hogue (ISBN-13: 978-0520037823 ISBN-10: 0520037820).
Similar guides are available for many
parts of the world. If you live in
Southern California, a great on-line resource is Dr. Peter J. Bryant’s Natural History of Orange
County and Nearby Places : http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/Arthropods.htm .
·
If you’re
having trouble identifying an insect, consider sending a photograph to your
local natural history museum or uploading pictures (N. American species) to
BugGuide (http://bugguide.net/node/view/15740)
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| Sphex ichneumoneus-6-24-12 |
We encourage your comments below.
If you have questions about photographing insects or other gardening
topics you can e-mail us at : mothernaturesbackyard10@gmail.com
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