Arboretum Photos Part 1

A 3rd Nikon DSLR for us, photo from last month!!

It is somewhat crazy how one's own decision making easily changes. Take for instance this weekend. 

I often intend to spend time in nature aware of my surroundings, studying my surroundings, and opening my senses to the experiences around me. Other times I chase a reported bird sighting, where it may be the first time I've seen that species or one I've seen before but am interested in seeing again. Less often I target specific bird species by searching appropriate habitat, or lastly I grab a camera with hopes of catching a good photo or two.  Many of those reasons disappear partially or completely when the girls are with. 

This Labor Day weekend I asked the girls to complete a rainbow challenge. The intent was to have the take a photo of an animal of each color of the rainbow. We returned to the Overland Park Arboretum in search of the birds, insects, reptiles, arachnids, and amphibians variety we had seen earlier this summer. Before we left the car however, the girls had decided it would be too tough to find anything purple or blue, and instead modified their challenge to find five different colors. They were great sports and spent the better part of an hour in their search.

I'm not sure what she was taking a picture of here.

Below are Danielle's photos.

 

Ruby-throated Hummingbird and a Painted Lady, species from my two favorite classes of animals.

    

Three Skipper sp. butterfly photos.

A Cricket Frog and Grasshopper sp. from the sidewalk.

  

A Fly (Villa Sp) and Arachnid (Harvestman sp perhaps Leiobunum vittatum)

Christine pointed out this hiding Five-lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) to Danielle. 

Below are Michaela's photos.

  

The Goldenrod Soldier Beetles (Chauliognathus Pennsylvanicus) were everywhere, as were ants.

    

A Black-legged Meadow Katydid and two Skipper Butterfly species.

  

A Cabbage White Butterfly and another visitor to the Hummingbird feeder.

It is fun to watch the girls notice things, slow down to take pictures, and to look through them on the computer afterwards.  Their perspective is quite different than mine. I did not get many photos on this day, beyond the one below. I did not quite get my fill of the surroundings either, but I can always go back again for myself.