Two butterfly wings

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Charles Krebs
Posts: 1200
Joined: Tue Jul 13, 2004 10:50 am
Location: Issaquah, WA USA

Two butterfly wings

Post by Charles Krebs »

Image

Two butterfly wings photographed with a 10X objective. This is a subject that I always find fascinating.

These are illuminated from underneath ("backlit") by the microscope condenser.

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piotr
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Post by piotr »

Beautiful, very elegant patterns. Interesting, there seems to be a variance in size of the scales between different species.
Piotr

lacerta
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Post by lacerta »

I would have guessed that the top image was also illuminated on the dorsal surface. Again, another super image.
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Wim van Egmond
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Post by Wim van Egmond »

Good to see you are back and making great images again, Charlie!

Did you already try the butterfly scales in darkfield? This way you get a kind of irridescent colours. The patterns in the scales give these colours. It also works with cleaned diatoms with the 10X obj.

Did you remove the scales from the wing?

Wim

Charles Krebs
Posts: 1200
Joined: Tue Jul 13, 2004 10:50 am
Location: Issaquah, WA USA

Post by Charles Krebs »

Did you remove the scales from the wing?
Well yes I did... but not on purpose :wink:

I have a bunch of old papered specimens that are extremely brittle. If I were more patient I would "re-hydrate" them before trying to work with the wings, but I don't. So I wind up with a selection of loose scales when I prepare a slide.

Lighting this subject in different ways always gives interesting "renditions". I particularly like the way the backlighting in the lower image shows how there are actually two different types of scales "interleaved" on this particular wing.

Like many, I'm attracted to strong patterns in nature. With this subject, I am equally in awe at how, in such a "lowly" creature, the various colored scales appear in the just the right places to form the intricate color designs found on butterflies and moths. And the mechanical/structural "engineer" in me is amazed at the materials and construction.

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