The Troublesome Sara Orangetip
On the UF Desert Biodiversity Field Trip, I found myself interested in photographing butterflies (and other flying insects) for the first time in my life. I felt a strange sense of joy following them through the thickets and waiting for the perfect moment for the butterfly to spread its wings, capturing the perfect identifiable shot. In retelling these stories to my partner, I was told I sounded like a cat, hunting its prey. I took pride in my skill, as all novices do when they have some beginner's luck.
Enter, my greatest humbling foe: The Sara Orangetip.
Along the Pictograph Trail of the Anza-Borrego desert, I spied his orange-tipped wings fluttering before me. I gave chase, straying from the path into the brush, readying my camera and hoping for him to land. I passed an already-perched swallowtail, but I decided to continue chasing the Orangetip, as I had already photographed a swallowtail earlier that day. And so I continued my tango with the Orangetip, weaving through chollas and creosotes, getting pricked a few times in the process. I even lost sight of him twice, crestfallen, only to spy him fluttering 30 feet away and chase with renewed vigor. Nearly half and hour was spent chasing this single Orangetip, who had yet to land on a branch once. Had I not been so irate, I might've been impressed by this little creatures' stamina. Nearly thirty minutes spent, before the Orangetip decided to fly up and over the mountain, disappearing from my view. My lesson had been learned: even the best hunters know, not every chase ends in success.
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