Monday, April 5, 2010

Crouching Photographer, Hidden Grasshopper

I belong to the "Assume something interesting is there, and crawl around with a camera until you find it" school of nature photography.

I spotted this guy when he jumped practically on top of me, then I lost him, then found him, then stupidly took my eyes off of him to glance up at some bird noise, then couldn't find him again, then he moved so I could see him. Then I took the picture before it was too late.

He sat almost perfectly still while I crept forward, until the camera's lens was only a couple of inches away. He was absolutely aware of me, perhaps wondering what kind of horrible lens-nosed monster-bird was after him. Knowing that concealment was the best form of protection, he willed himself to become part of the leaf litter as I approached. The only movement that I could detect was a painfully slow drawing up of his left rear leg, as he tensed for the jump he might have to make if his concealment failed him.

I slowly reached forward to pull a weed that was in the way of the picture. This was too much, and he fled a short hop away. I saw where he landed, and kept my eye pinned to that spot as I crawled over there.

I couldn't find him. I clearly saw where he landed, but I could NOT find him.

I thought about brushing my hand through the dead leaves and early spring plants to roust him out again, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It wasn't fair, somehow. My survival didn't depend on finding him. I'd gotten the picture I'd hoped for. He won. His skills of hiding bested my skills of finding.

I'm tentatively calling this the Northern Green-Striped grasshopper (Chortophaga viridifasciata).

9 comments:

  1. He really is hiding well.... I still can't see him, even when I enlarged the photo! :O)

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  2. He's dead center, facing the upper left.

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  3. Would Joy of 2000 believe that Joy of 2010 would be lying on the ground, trying to get CLOSER to a grasshopper?

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  4. You mean, instead of shrieking and doing the "get-away-from-me" dance?

    Joy of 2000 would think Joy of 2010 had flipped her lid.

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  5. Great capture! I'm okay with flowers, but bugs and birds seem to flit tantilizingly out of lens range.

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  6. Hi Joy - I had to look hard to spot this grasshopper. Or is it a katydid? Not sure - but I love natural camouflage. Nature is so clever!

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  7. Amber, it could easily be a katydid. I'm not sure. It does have that katydid-ish ridge on its back.

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  8. After a bit of research, Amber, I'm going to call it a Northern Green-striped grasshopper. (Chortophaga viridifasciata) If I'm wrong, I hope someone will correct me.

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  9. Everywhere, especially this time of year, there are secrets awaiting to be seen in the wild. Of course, they're not really secrets; it's just we don't usually have the skills to notice all this life. Patience! This a lovely find.

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