First mating butterflies this year

[MacroLuv]

Mating Small Cabbage White Pieris rapae (?) on sunny spring day and me in role of "peeping Tom".



Model Canon EOS 400D DIGITAL
Date/time original 20.04.2008 13:50:26
Shutter speed value 1/200 s
Aperture value f/13
ISO speed ratings ISO 200
Focal length 100 mm



Model Canon EOS 400D DIGITAL
Date/time original 20.04.2008 13:52:58
Shutter speed value 1/400 s
Aperture value f/8
ISO speed ratings ISO 200
Focal length 100 mm



Model Canon EOS 400D DIGITAL
Date/time original 20.04.2008 13:53:55
Shutter speed value 1/320 s
Aperture value f/7.1
ISO speed ratings ISO 200
Focal length 100 mm
_________________
The meaning of beauty is in sharing with others.

P.S.
Noticing of my "a" and "the" and other grammar
errors are welcome.

[Erland R.N.]

That is three different photos I like. Good focus and choise of aperture.
The third is a really great close up portrait.

Erland

[jaharris1001]

very nice sharp shots here Nikola,, I too really like the third one,, very nice lighting and super sharp !! The interlacing of the wings is very cool and how they mate facing in opposite directions is intersting
_________________
Jim

"I'm growing older,, but not up " Jimmy Buffett

[MacroLuv]

Thanks folks.
I'm also pleased with results. Actually they were not cooperative to the maximum. They runs away if I get too close.
Can anyone say for sure which one is male / female. Is there any gender dependent rule how they cross their wings? In tandem, one was flying actively keeping direction, another passively (bacward). Assuming that an active flyer (flier?) is one with wings on outside place. On the third picture they were still in tandem but other one is not visible (outside picture frame). Any guess which one is on third picture?
_________________
The meaning of beauty is in sharing with others.

P.S.
Noticing of my "a" and "the" and other grammar
errors are welcome.

[rjlittlefield]

Nikola, like everybody else said, these are excellent photos -- interesting compositions, sharp focus, strong colors. That third one is a very dramatic angle that reminds me of your earlier arms-length work with compact camera. It must have been challenging to get that shot with a DSLR!

I cannot answer your questions for sure. Generally the female of this species has larger body and wings. Also the black area at the tip of the front wing is relatively larger in females, and often not as dark. All of this suggests that in picture #2 it is female on the right, male on the left. Picture #1 is not so definite, and in picture #3 I have no idea. Regarding which one flies, in most butterflies it is the female. But I found one article in J.Lep.Soc. specifically describing a normal breeding pair of rapae, and in that case it was the male. On the other hand, there is another report of a cross-specific mating between rapae male and protodice female, and in that case it was the female. I don't think I would like to place a bet, based on this sparse and conflicting info. Sorry!

--Rik

[nto]

three beautiful images Nikola, dark part of the top subject with high background of the first photos and fabulous!!!
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Antonio

[Harold Gough]

I like the harmonious patches of colour in the background of the first two images. They add to the overall interest, contributing to the compositions, without distracting from the main subjects.

These seem to be the small white. The female has the darker mark on the tip of the forewing. In general, with butterflies in copula, the female is uppermost and does the hanging on to the substrate and the male dangles from her rear end. The males tend to be smaller than the females but the size of individuals can be affected by their nutrition as a larva.

The third one is excellent for the head and thorax but my preference would be to slightly change the viewing position to prevent the tips of the antennae seeming to somewhat merge with the background foliage.

Harold
_________________
My images are a medium for sharing some of my experiences: they are not me.

[MacroLuv]

Thanks for trying Rik.

[MacroLuv]

[MacroLuv]

Thanks for explanations Harold.

[Harold Gough]