Increasingly Birding Festivals are as much about butterflies and dragonflies for me as they are about birds. I suppose it is just a phase I am going through. This week I am at the Rio Grande Valley Birding and Nature Festival in Harlingen Texas, and there is almost nowhere in the US that is better for butterflies than the Rio Grande Valley. As for dragonflies, there are actually more species in New England than anywhere else, but there are some dragons here I will, of course, never see in Maine. And I do pay attention to the birds as well!

I walked up on a knowledgeable gentleman photographing this Hairstreak at Estero Llano Grande State Park and World Birding Center yesterday. He was quite excited as it is a rare species: the Red-crescent Scrub-Hairsteak. I almost certainly would not have even seen it (it is tiny), and I certainly would not have seen it as anything special, if the gentleman had not been practically on his stomach trying to get a good angle on the bug. As it was I had to go ask.

With the reach of the Canon SX50HS’ long zoom I was able to get decent shots over his shoulder. Estero Llano Grande has extensive plantings for butterflies…and lots of ponds for dragonflies.

Canon SX50HS. Program with auto iContrast and Shadow Fill. –2/3 EV exposure compensation. 1800mm equivalent field of view. f6.5 @ 1/1000th @ ISO 160. Processed in Lightroom for intensity, clarity, and sharpness.