Ornate Checkered Beetle on Sticky Purple Geranium, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, UtahOrnate Checkered Beetle on Sticky Purple Geranium – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 400, -0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

When my trips to the field are slow bird-wise there is always something else to focus on. Earlier this week it was an Ornate Checkered Beetle on Sticky Purple Geraniums. I stopped to photograph the Sticky Purple Geraniums (Geranium viscosissimum) because they were the first that I had seen flowering this year. Their pretty pink blooms drew my eyes straight to them.

As I focused on one of the flowers I saw a black and yellow beetle on it that I didn’t recognize so I wanted to be sure to take images that showed the beetle clearly. I saw a few more of the beetles on the other flowers but the one in this photo showed the beetle the best.

After I returned home I was able to use iNaturalist to identify this beetle as an Ornate Checkered Beetle (Trichodes ornatus) by exploring the beetles found in Summit County. I was tickled because this was a lifer beetle for me. Getting excited about a beetle or anything wild that is new to me is part of who I am.

Blooming Sticky Purple Geranium, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, UtahBlooming Sticky Purple Geranium – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 400, -0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I took more images of the Sticky Purple Geraniums than I did the beetles. I saw and photographed these wildflowers before I moved to Utah on a trip out here from Florida in July of 2008.

When I am in the field I pay attention to practically everything I can see or hear because everything in nature is connected. There are photos in my galleries that I would never have been able to create if it weren’t for the approach that I take when I am out in the field. I observe and relish what I see, hear and find. I stop frequently,  I linger and I love what I do.

Life is good.

Mia

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