Tuesday, 29 January 2013

IMGA4675 Frozen Moments - Tanya

The 'Frozen Moments' I have chosen show snippets of life in an aphid colony. If you stop and watch one of these for a few moments (instead of getting out the bug spray) they are an absolute hive of activity! It's amazing to watch the ever present ants as they 'groom' the aphids with their antennae and front legs, gently encouraging the aphids to excrete a nectar droplet that the ants consume. The ant's abdomens become translucent and golden as they fill with the nectar. In return for a tasty treat, the ants help keep predators such as Hoverfly and Ladybird larvae away - but the predators are ever present and I captured one Hoverfly laying eggs all around the colony. All stages of aphids can been seen from the teeny tiny ones, through to the black ones with wings. On some of the smaller aphids you can see the wing buds developing on their sides, they look like pale waxy blobs. The enemy of the gardener, but a treat to a macro photographer!


Ants with Nectar Droplets.

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Nectar Filled Abdomens.

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Predator! Hoverfly Laying Eggs

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8 comments:

  1. ildanach29 January 2013 at 15:08

    Wow. Never realised there was so much to an aphid colony! Seeing these makes me hope my husband has taken my VERY strong hints for a macro lens. I would have loved 1 this last fortnight.

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  2. MnDM29 January 2013 at 16:33

    WOW, these are amazing! Who knew!! Now I'll stop to appreciate the colonies more, rather than get the white oil out!

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  3. Unknown29 January 2013 at 17:12

    very cool! can't say I'll ever be a fan of the aphid though

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  4. Lorrella29 January 2013 at 18:22

    Wow. That hoverfly shot is awesome! And the translucent abdomens are fascinating (and quite pretty, in an odd kind of way!). Thanks for showing me interesting things about aphids :)

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  5. Unknown29 January 2013 at 18:58

    Wow, these are great and really interesting!

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  6. Taylah Stiles29 January 2013 at 19:02

    Woah. These look awesome! Love macro!

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  7. Kerri30 January 2013 at 16:13

    Fantastic photos and I love how much you know about these little creatures and were able to share with us. It really helps give great context to the images. :-)

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  8. Tanya30 January 2013 at 19:15

    Thanks everyone :) Kerri - there's a reason why my OH calls me a 'nature nerd' lol

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