A burst of purple with a heart of gold: what bug wouldn’t want to nectar at a flower? (A lot actually, but who’s counting?)

I always knew these violets as “jumping Johnnies,” but the Intertubez tell me they are “Johnny jump ups.” My unease with vegetation grows, but I guess they are jumping and Johnny either way, so good enough. Photo-wise, they are a potentially difficult subject for my camera, as it often has trouble rendering purples, but the colors came out very nicely and accurately in this shot. I really like the pattern of black “daggers” and the light spray of white pollen over the standout colors. I’m not one to dabble in black and white too often; my subjects’ strength is often in their color, as I would argue is the case here, and I like to stick to that — but I think this might be a good candidate for b&w. I’ll have to put it in the “mess around” folder.