Alfalfa Looper Moth – “I Can Hear You!”

My Autumn Joy Sedum has had a very good year. Liberated from the shade of an aggressive Lilac, and planted in a sunny location, it has responded with a wonderful show of fall flowers. How nice of it to bring a spot of colour to a flower bed full of plants that went to seed weeks ago!

The insects have been visiting the Sedum so often that I have to think it will soon run out of pollen and nectar! In addition to the bees and hoverflies, several species of moths have been attracted to the vivid pink flowers. I was keen to take pictures of another type of insect, so I closed in on the moth with my new macro lens. The moth did not budge. It was not alarmed by my presence – until I clicked the shutter.

In the blink of an eye, the moth was gone. I had a nice photo of the sedum, but no moth. So I tried again.

With my second shot I caught a glimpse of the moth before it exited, stage right.

My third attempt wasn’t all that successful either.

For my fourth attempt, I backed away a bit, but the moth could still hear the shutter.

For my last shot, I backed away a bit more, and this time I got the moth, a bee and a hoverfly, all in motion – an Insect Trifecta!