Rise of the Purple Hairstreaks - Butterfly Life Cycle Documentary V03006 

I used to watch this video back when it first came out... I was 3, watching it on a Windows XP machine, I am very grateful for this video, as its one of the few things that I can remember through a troubled childhood. Thank you

Can't believe that those chubby little green leaf looking caterpillars grow up to be these butterflies that look like their wings are made of jewels...beautiful!

Thanks, Mimi :D These little guys are something you normally get to see in everyday life - it was my pleasure to bring them to you!

Fabulous video - thank you for sharing...we appreciate the time and effort it took to make this and will share it often!

Those little bugs are really something, aren't they? :D Thanks so much for watching and commenting :-)

Glad you enjoyed! Too bad they're so secretive and hard to find! These little critters have fascinated me since I was a kid, and there seems to be no end to what we can learn about them. Thanks for watching!

Absolutely stunning! My 4 yr old granddaughter wants to watch this everyday now. I want her to see how amazing and beautiful our natural world is. Thank you so much from both of us! :-D

Thanks so much for taking the time to write this great comment! Yes, this was one my bigger projects - nearly 5 months-worth of time and effort, and something I'd been wanting to put together for a very long time. The real icing on the cake is that the world now has the opportunity to see and enjoy it too! :-)

It's really nice to see you back online - thanks for visiting and kind words! :-)

Thanks so much, Monica! I'm really glad you're enjoying my work! :-)

Wow - that's the coolest critique my videos have ever had! Thanks for the in-depth review :D Not surprisingly, many of the improvements in my work are partly due to viewer comments about what they did and didn't like about my previous productions. Maybe some day I'll catch up to the professionals! :D Thanks again for your time and effort to write that!

This video is so amazing. Thank you for sharing these with those of us who will most likely never see this in real life. Your music and your filming are beautiful. I could watch these videos of yours for hours on end and never tire of them! :)

Hi Linda! Thanks so much for posting my work there - I see you have 2 others there as well... I hope the readers there enjoy the show :-) Cheers and have a great weekend!

Fantastic! I've never seen one of these, and their coloration is incredible! It was a monstrous project capturing their full life cycle, I'm sure. Your photography was, as always, spectacular!! Moosie

It always amazes me to see how such a large set of wings can come from such a small package! XD I'm glad you enjoyed the show - thanks so much for the visit and kind words! :-)

Wow, beautiful. Beautiful music, beautiful video. So many amazing things. The honey-comb intricacy of the egg sac, the way the tiny caterpillars blend in with the colour of the leaves, and how ugly they are in their last stage, and how beautiful they become. Wow!!!

The end of the video is intense. I love the closeup timelapses articulating the colors shifting in the wings, I gotta say that is some blessed footage man. Hairstreaks are tiny, but there is a whole universe of color in those wings.

Thank you for revisiting my childhood with new vision. There were many of these when I was growing up flitting among the lupine and poppies. They frequented by grandparents place; half the yard was garden, the other overgrown with grapes, trees, & a compost heap! Grandpa warned me someday they'd be rare to see, as he watched a great Condor fell swoop from a tree - I was so lucky to love these things! Lastly I saw a mission blue near Pacifica. I miss the bay, & the good golden days...Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

Some of these were big projects, taking several months or even years to complete - glad you enjoyed! Thanks for checking them out :-)

Thanks so much for stopping by! :-) I found your stuff very cool too - your music is top-notch :D

I'm glad you enjoyed this one - it was a big project and these little critters were quite spectacular to film :-)

I'm glad you liked this one! I had wanted to raise this species for many years. It was one of the most effort-intensive of my many projects... The music was written specifically for this vid, took nearly two weeks - the second longest musical effort next to the "Stitching the Sky" score. I only wish I had shot all the footage in HD, but this was made before I had the capability! :-)

I'm glad you enjoyed this one - it was one of my bigger projects in both photography and music writing :-) Have a great weekend!

That's great to hear - thank you! I'm glad that you are get as much enjoyment out of these as I am getting from making them :-)

Thanks so much - I put a lot of effort into the filming and writing the music for this one... I'm glad you enjoyed! Cheers! =)

Glad you enjoyed this one - it was a big project and a lot of work :-) Thanks for stopping by!

I particularly liked the way they change color as the wings expand. Something about the metallic blue/green that really looks cool =)

Thanks for checking it out! This is probably one of my best Lep productions so far. It was a big, long rearing project, with TONS of pics and video shot. I wrote the music specifically for this project, too. I only with I had my HD equipment at that time. Oh well - I guess I'll just have to do it again now that I have better equipment! :-)

I found them surprisingly easy to rear - friendly and cooperative. Most hairstreaks ARE smaller and not as brightly colored as these - well worth the effort! :-)

It is a truly amazing process - they do actually "pump" a semi-clear fluid into the wings' vein structure to expand them to full size. The fact that they can fit those wings into that tiny little pupal case along with the rest of their body is the real impressive part! Thanks for visiting! :-)

Thanks so much! It was hard to go wrong documenting these butterflies - they are like little jewels! :-)

Glad you enjoyed this one - it was a big project and lots of work. Thanks for visiting! :-)

These are definitely some of the most amazing little bugs, and the irridescent color-changing scales were quite a surprise I wasn't expecting to see. Thanks for checking it out! :-)

Most of my rearing projects are pretty interesting and enjoyable but this one was particularly so :-) Thanks so much for stopping by!

Yea, they're shy little bugs! The only time you can see them with their wings open is when they're mounted in collections or better - when they first emerge like this! Glad you liked the music, too - that took me a week! Thanks so much! :D

Thanks for the nice words :-) Yes it was quite the effort to get all this footage, then writing the music and all. Glad it's getting to be enjoyed by all! :D

I never considered finding outstanding nature documentary videos on RU-vid, but was directed here by a great lep photog from the Northeast. I'm SO glad she posted the link to our nature photo group! I was captivated from the very first, and also appreciated your written chronology in your notes. I'll be passing around the link myself as I know many folks who would hate to have missed this video! BTW, I applaud the soundtrack, too! A perfect marriage with the visual!

Glad you liked! I would guess that bug enthusiasts can especially appreciate this detailed look into such a scarce and spectacular critters. :D

I'm glad you enjoyed the show - thanks for the view and kind words! :-)

So nice to hear that my work is appreciated - thank you! :-)

What a beautiful butterfly. Thank you for taking the time to post this for us to see

Thanks so much for watching and commenting :-) I had wanted to raise this species since I was a kid. It was quite a treat to finally accomplish AND document for everyone else to experience too! This is also one of the few vids for which I wrote the music specifically to go with the events and images. So glad you enjoyed this one :-)

Wow- the wings unfolding were heavenly! It almost made me cry! I'm not even sure why but that was just beautiful and perfect music too.

Thanks so much! I'm glad you enjoyed the show! :-)

...that was an absolute treat,you've captured some wonderful shots.Together with the real relaxing music,I had a lovely morning coffee,chilled out to this a couple of times and began my day feelin great...what more could anyone ask for! This must have taken so much work n patience to complete,a real labour of love. I love the natural world,it never ceases to amaze.Butterfies n moths are a particular fav.,so well done for caprturing moments we might otherwise never have seen so beautifully.

Thank you very much for this complete documentary - it is the best I've seen until now!!!

Great comment! Thanks so much for the view and kind words - I'm glad you enjoyed the show :-)

Glad you enjoyed the show - thanks so much for visiting! =)

A new favorite for me! Your videos are very inspirational , thanks for all the effort it takes to produce such an incredible video!

Thank you so much for this great comment! A lot of work went into this project and it's really nice to see it being enjoyed by others! :-)

This is very lovely to watch aside from being very informative in itself. It's nice to sometime just stop and cherish the moment watching nature unfolds. Thanks for making that possible for busy people like me..

the pupa stage is disturing for me

I'm glad you enjoyed - thanks for visiting! =)

Even more interesting is that the closer you look, the more detail and complexity there is to see and discover :-) Thanks for stoping by!

Well hello there! Glad to see you made it on board - and safely, too! Thanks once again for watching and all the very nice comments - Such appreciation makes all the hard work well worthwhile :-)

I found it particularly interesting how they emerge bright green and change to a more blue color as the irridescent scales change position and refract the light at different angles. Very cool little bugs

Thanks so much for the great comment and kind words! I'm happy you're nnjoying my work :-) Cheers!

Gracias por ofrecernos el lujo de contemplar un trabajo de tanto tiempo en 5 minutos de gran belleza. Felicidades por las imágenes y la elección de la música.

Than you so much for all your attention and kind words! =)

My pleasure - thanks for stopping by! :D

I'm glad you enjoyed this one - it was indeed a lot of work! Thanks for the view and kind words :-)

Fascinating life cycle. Gorgeous transformation. Nature is an amazing thing...

This was a big project and took a lot of work - glad you enjoyed the show! :-)

Absolutely amazing compilation. You want to see metamorphosis in action, I couldn't suggest a better video. It's absolutely crazy how the larva go from caterpillar to butterfly.

Thanks so much for the great comment! This is one of my better works and I'm glad you enjoyed it. :-)

So glad you enjoyed -thanks for checking it out! :-)

Thanks so much for the great comment! Nice to hear that my work is appreciated! :-)

This is one of my best shows and most interesting projects so far :-)

Nature documentaries are some of my favorite kinds of films, too - thanks for watching mine! :-)

Actually, all of these came from the eggs of ONE female! She is the one shown feeding at the beginning. A friend of mine caught her out in the desert and brought her back to me so I could try to raise some. It turned out to be easier than I thought and the project was a whopping success. Lots of time and effort to record it all, but well worth it. :D

Thanks so much for the great comment! This was a big project and I'm glad you enjoyed it :-) Cheers!

Thanks so much for stopping by! =)

Your videos are so incredibly wonderful and I am fascinated by what I have seen so far!! This particular one is very moving - the photography and the whole process is beautifully portrayed by you. Favorited and top stars to your artistic talent!

Amazing video of awe-inspiring and thought-provoking beauty. Thank you for making and sharing it! 5 stars!!!

Thanks for the kind words! I hope you get your 4:3 issue sorted out - I'm looking forward to more of your stuff! :D

Super nice comment - thank you very much! I'm glad my work is getting a chance to be seen by those who can appreciate it - nice of you to share it with others. :D Thanks, too, for the comment about the music - that took me about a week to write. :-)

So glad you enjoyed this one - it was one of my biggest projects :-)

One of the most beautifull nature creation I've ever seen. Great vid 5/5!

heart felt thanks for showing such a marvellous and mind boggling beauty .natures creative explosion indeed leaves one speechless.

One of my bigger projects and productions - glad you enjoyed! :-)

They sure are beautiful, it's ever so nice to see someone dedicated to such interesting and educational work (: Thank you very much for recommending this, I really enjoyed it (:

Totally awesome! What a delightful way to start my day. Another breathtaking video from you. Thank you for sharing with us.

WOW!! Alot of work went into this. Very good cinematography and excellent close up work. Beautiful. 5/5

Juany - thanks so much for the nice comment. Yes I agree the butterfly's transformation is just an amazing process. I'm glad you enjoyed the documentary. :D

The worms alr look like the pupae💀

Hi Paula! Glad you enjoyed - thanks for watching! :-)

Hi Milly! Thanks so much for watching, and the nice comment - glad you liked it :D

This is probably one of the most unusual caterpillars I have reared yet. You're right - when they are scattered around the mistletoe plant in small numbers they are nearly impossible to detect unless you spend a LOT of time examining each leaf. Thanks for checking it out! :-)

Oddly, Monarchs are one of the few I haven't raised yet. I have some fond memories of chasing Cabbage Butterflies with a shoe box as a 6-year-old, and vague memories of catching lightning bugs in a jar at 3. That's probably how I got my start. Definitely - good times! =D

Always loved nature documentaries, myself. The images you've taken are certainly worthy of that :::smiles:::

Thanks so much for such a super nice comment! Glad you enjoyed and thanks for watching :D

Thanks for stopping by! Cheers :D

Wonderful video. It makes me glad that there are still good people out there who actually care for these majestic creatures :)

That is so nice to hear! Thanks for letting me know, I hope you both continue to enjoy work :-) Have a great week!

It's great comments and appreciation like yours that really makes all the effort worthwhile - thank you so much! :-) :-)

Thanks so much for the great comment! I'm happy you're enjoying my video and music :-) Cheers!

This is beautiful photography and the description is a work of art in itself. I like the way you brought this to my notice, friend.

These were definitely cool little bugs. I spent nearly 6 months rearing and documenting them, and a couple of weeks writing the soundtrack. Big job but enjoyable project. =)

Thanks Ingrid! Also thanks for the Hummingbird vid share on FB =) Cheers!

Thank you so much for the nice comment - I'm glad you enjoyed the show! :-)