It happens so often that the plan to shoot a specific thing goes kaboom. I wanted to get some spiders, as I hadn't shot any in a very long time. I saw a big lawn full of flowers, trees, and grasses but I did not see a single one.
Nada!
I did find a bunch of those big black beetles having a party on the wild flowers. Hundreds of beetles. There were hardly any other insects feeding on the daisies.
Well... you know what they say: If you can't shoot what you want, you shoot what you have.
Or did I just make that up? 🤔
Heliotaurus ruficollis
The beetle is common to southern parts of Europe and north Africa. As you can see, it is very easy to spot. It is quite large, and its black and red colour really stands out among the white flowers.
Adults feed on nectar and pollen, being important pollinators of Mediterranean flora. However, they can cause damage to crops, as they also consume flowers. The larvae feed in the soil, on fungi and organic matter found on decomposing wood.
source
A cool thing about this fella is that it is so easy to photograph! When they sit on a flower, they will just eat and move very slowly. At first, when I saw this large amount of flowers with dozens of them sitting in the center, I did not know which one to shoot. I wanted to do it fast before they flew away. But I did not have to hurry a lot, and I could slowly pick which one I wanted to shoot. Which one was looking in the right direction and had good light on.
Pity the wind that kept interrupting, but we can't have it all, right? :)
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A stunning piece of lawn I must say, with all the wildflowers on. It was a nice thing that the park maintenance company let them be for a while before mowing them all.
What would the buggers eat otherwise?
Shot with Nikon D5500 + Sigma 105mm lens
All photos and text are my own.
