A couple weeks ago, I was walking around in my family’s prairie and spotted this tiny silhouette. The morning sun was shining through the leaves of a stiff goldenrod plant and a fly was (apparently) warming itself in those rays. Since I was on the opposite side of the leaf from the fly, I was able to sneak up, get my tripod set up, and take a couple photographs before it flew off.
The silhouette of a fly on a stiff goldenrod leaf. Helzer Family Prairie, Stockham, Nebraska.
Have a great weekend!
A couple years ago, a severe ice storm hit Nebraska, knocking down trees and power lines and coating everything in sight with a thick layer of ice. For several days, everything was so slick I could barely get around my yard to clean up fallen tree branches, let alone get out to nearby prairies for photography. Fortunately, my backyard prairie garden was still accessible to me, and I was able to get a couple of decent shots, including this one of rigid goldenrod seed heads.
Rigid goldenrod seed heads encased in ice.
The Prairie Ecologist 