tree year project 2011, #11

monarch butterfly resting on coast Douglas-fir
Danaus plexippus on Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii
Pinaceae

In the past week, I've seen more monarchs flying around town on the sunnier days. One was kind enough to rest on the Douglas-fir tree that I'm featuring for The Tree Year project. And, no, those orange-brown blobs in the second picture aren't monarchs; they're cones. I wanted to also show how brown the cones have gotten. Actually they started turning from green to brown back in August, but I'm just now getting a picture of it.

http://thetreeyear.wordpress.com/tree-year-posts/life-on-the-tree/insects/