Mercantour National Park (Part Two)
During our time in Mercantour National Park we spent a little time in Italy exploring the Santa Anna Valley.
Nikon D800, 24mm-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/11, tripod.
On some of the hottest days we spent part of the time exploring the small mountain villages and churches. Some were centuries old with amazing alters and a fascinating history. Most of the interiors were rather dark with very little light entering the main areas. We photographed many of the alters and statues which provided some welcome diversity during the middle of the day when temperatures were at their hottest. Below are a few example of some of the mountain scenery and churches we photographed.
Medieval village of Roure, Mercantour, France
Many of the villages were perched high up in the mountains. Most of the roads are narrow, fairly steep with very little room to pass.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 100 @ f/11, tripod.
St Laurent XIII° church at Roure France
All of the churches were highly decorated with a number of different alcoves which contained many different statues.
Nikon D800, 24-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/16, tripod.
Chapelle Saint-Sébastien St Etienne de Tinee
This was the oldest church we found. It was beside a small meadow that was reasonably productive for butterflies.
Nikon D800, 24-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/16, tripod.
Chapelle Saint-Sébastien St Etienne de Tinee
The church is in pretty poor state but dates back to the early 15th century. The door was bolted so we photographed through the metal bars, which prevented anyone entering the church since the windows were long gone.
Nikon D800, 24-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/16, tripod.
Chapelle Saint-Sébastien St Etienne de Tinee
What amazed us about this church was the fact that it was totally exposed to the elements, yet it was still in reasonable order despite having no windows.
Nikon D800, 24-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/16, tripod.
One of the best locations we visited was the road up to the Col de la Lombarde, which you access from the village of Isola. The roadside habitat was very productive in places and produced some interesting insects including good numbers of Apollo’s, which provided some great photographic opportunities. Day-flying moths were also very much in evidence but more difficult than the butterflies at times to get close to.The 2350 meter Col is the border between France and Italy and we spent time exploring part of the Italian side which had some vey interesting habitat.
Landscape view near Isola 2000
The road winds its way up to the 2350 meter Col, which takes a while. There are many opportunities along the road to take in the views. There are no safety barriers around most of the bends so you need a good head for heights.
Nikon D800, 24-70mm lens, ISO 100 @ f/11, tripod.
Speckled Yellow Psudopanthera macularia
Day-flying moths were widespread in the small alpine meadows along the road up to the Col de la Lombarde. The majority of species were easily spooked so using a shorter focal length macro such as the 105mm was more productive in this case than a tripod.
Nikon D800, 100mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, Handheld.
Choethippus scalaris
The meadows were packed with these insects, every step sent dozen’s of them scattering through the vegetation. Most of them were more approachable in the evening when the temperature was cooler.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, tripod.
Lackey Moth Larva Malacosoma neustria
We also found a number of caterpillars at different sites throughout the trip.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, fill-flash, tripod.
Spotted Fritillary larva Melitaea didyma
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, fill-flash, tripod.
Parent Bug Elasmucha grisea
Apart from the large number of butterflies we encountered, there were many other insects that sparked our interest. Shield bugs were particularly common in a multitude of sizes and colours.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, flash, tripod.
Rhopalus subrufus
One of the more challenging species to photograph. The adults are less than a centimetre in length.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/16, flash, tripod.
Goldenrod Crab Spider Misumena vatia
Spiders were pretty common among the vegetation, we photographed a number of them with prey and at rest among the foliage.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/22, flash, tripod.
Jumping Spider Sitticus pubescens
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/16, flash, tripod.
Trichodes alvearius
Many of the flowers were either inhabited with grasshoppers and crickets or various flower beetles.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/16, flash, tripod.
Wart Biter Decticus verrucivorus
One of the biggest cricket we frequently encountered in the alpine meadows.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, fill-flash, tripod.
Trumpet Gentian Gentiana acaulis
Gentians were pretty common in the higher alpine meadows.
Nikon D800, 200mm macro lens, ISO 200 @ f/11, fill-flash, tripod.
Vanilla orchid Nigritella cornelliana