Praying Mantis

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Preying Mantis
When I began as a nature photographer, it was macro photography that first captured my attention.  I photographed flowers and bugs most of the time, preferably with both in the same photo.  As my fascination with bird photography has developed, I less frequently have my macro lens with me.  This photo was actually taken with my 400mm lens. I just could not resist his gaze.

Incidentally, the Praying Mantis is actually a lesson in linguistics as well.  When you hear the name, do you think "praying" or "preying?"  Both spellings reveal something about the mantis--the first it's posture, and the second its behavior.  The pronunciation is identical with either spelling, but the meaning changes with the spelling and both meanings are appropriate to the term.  I found out this is called an "eggcorn."  Nature has given us a lesson in linguistics.  

Comments

  1. Cool shot! Back before BiF! was multi-author, I once blogged about a Preying Mantis eating a locust. They are irresistible.

    I was surprised by your blog color change. That green seemed to be a kind of trademark. Although it does seem that photography is more impactful on the dark gray or black backgrounds online.

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    1. Thanks! I debated about changing the green. On the one hand, I thought it a rather striking green, as even I could see it well. But to my color-blind eyes, it seemed to clash a little with some photos with a different color scheme. I thought black/grey might be more neutral. I still wonder if I made the right choice. I do like green.

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  2. Love the look. The raptor at the top clearly wants to learn photography!

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