To know when NOT to hover.....

.....and the tummy always knows ;0)

Hover Fly - Yellow & Black Insect On Wild Aster

Backyard Woodland Diptera Wildflowers

Richmond Virginia - Chesterfield County

Nature Photograph by Carolyn Hietala (click on image to enlarge)

Good AfterMoon Miss Luna!

Ahhhh..... to be MOONED by a beautiful insect.

Honestly, I don't really know if this moth is a miss, ms, mrs or it even might be a mister!? Anyway it's definitely a moon shot ;0)

Nature Wildlife Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Remember Marimba?

Ahhhh..... The beautiful resonating sounds of rosewood.

Can't think of a better way to remember a tree!

Nature Tree Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Huckleberry Blue

A dry summer and some very hungry critters made doubly sure that the sweet smell of fresh baked huckleberry pie would not grace my kitchen this year..... so bluely missed.

Nature Berry Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

This is a wild variety native to Richmond, Virginia - Chesterfield County - Woodland Plant

Busy Busy Bee! Busy Busy ME!

Wild Asters of October Autumn.....

with fresh morning dew and an eager Honey Bee in flight.

I love this composition and can't wait to paint it one day ;0)

Busy Busy Me!..... I'll be slowing down my photo posting just a little as my oil painting is taking priority. It's not like I don't have plenty of reference images...... ha. Hope to share my art again soon.

Nature Wildlife Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

richmond virginia - chesterfield county - wildflowers - insect in flight

Landscape: The Rolling Hills Of Virginia

October Autumn Colors Emerging

Images taken in late evening through a car window moving at the speed of.... I'm not telling ;0)

Nature Photographs by Carolyn Hietala

Soul Mates..... basking in love's glow

Pearly Crescentspot - Phyciodes tharos

Richmond, Virginia - Chesterfield County

Wild Aster - Butterflies

Nature Insect Macro Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Life under the wild asters of Virginia

A small jumping spider.....

.....warms in the sun while resting upon a fading blade of ornamental grass. It remains on alert as insect prey and predator move all about.

It's a busy buzzy world amongst the wildflowers in my backyard this Autumn. Bees are urgently hopping from flower to flower, hover flies are hovering, butterflies incessantly flirting; all being watched by this lone stationary arachnid.

I begin to feel a close connection with this spider as we both are observers here. We're sharing intimate views in this tiny, seemingly insignificant universe. I leave with a smile ;0)

richmond virginia -chesterfield county - backyard - salticidae

Nature Insect Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Hover Fly Magnets

Wildflowers & Hover Fly

Wild Asters are Hoverfly magnets! Oh how I look forward to their autumn blossoms as they attract a myriad of insects. With your camera in hand, pull up a lawn chair and capture their antics. Get close enough and you will smell the delicate fragrance of the tiny white flowers. ENJOY! ;0)

Nature Insect Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

What a beautiful world I live in!

Species: Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi

Spotted Cucumber Beetle

My Mom's Graham Thomas English Rose - Autumn Bloom

Nature Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

All my images are copyright protected with all rights reserved.

Ahhhh.... Virginia's Wildlife! Paper Wasp On Wild Asters

Polistes bellicosus

Insect Nature Macro Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Image is copyright protected with all rights reserved.

Photo taken in Richmond, Virginia - Chesterfield County

Luscious Cascading Red

Reminiscing a lazy hazy day of Summer

with an image of wild red Blackberries

A berry plant native to Virginia that is very wildlife friendly!

Nature Fruit Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

(all my images are copyright protected with all rights reserved)

REACH FOR THE LIGHT

HONEYBEE ON WILD ASTER

Our honeybees are in trouble

Please preserve the native wildflowers of Virginia by integrating them into your flower gardens. Their beauty is amazing!

Let's keep our bees happy and healthy ;0)

Nature Wildlife Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

(image taken in my own backyard - Richmond, Va. - Chesterfield County)

All of my photographs are copyright protected with all rights reserved.

Why I Love The Wild Asters Of Virginia

The tiny white flowers are teeming with life.....

a smorgasbord for insects and insect photographers alike!

Aster dumosus - Bushy Aster - a native wildflower - perennial

Nature Wildlife Photography by Carolyn Hietala

Yard Buddy In Camouflage Suit

This is one my Miniature Pinscher's "friends"..... a rather large, brave and admirably tolerant Pickerel Frog.

They used to frolic during the day and frequently at night under the illumination of the porch light..... until recently.

My Min Pin has grown so accustomed to the presence of this amphibian in "his" backyard that he now only greets it with a quick sniff then walks away. No longer do they frolic.

Finally! Thank goodness! Two summers of constant "LEAVE IT" has been enough for me!!!! ;0)

Nature Wildlife Photograph by Carolyn Hietala

Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen

This neonate reptile is native to Richmond, Virginia.

Northern Copperhead Snake

Nature Herp Photograph by Carolyn Hietala