Ambush bug (Phymata sp.) lying in wait amid a field of Queen Anne’s Lace flowers. (Black and white)

Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota), a.k.a. wild carrot, is a great macro photography back drop for dreamy, ethereal shots. These ambush bugs can often be found lying in wait in the platforms of tiny white flowers of QAL. Their spiky backs and raptorial claws juxtapose starkly with the field of soft white; their fixed looks of surprise in contradiction to their deadly, predacious nature double the effect. Nervous Drogon in the land of the Care Bears, maybe? In any event, there’s something wonderfully out of place about it; I never get tired of these shots.

This might be another case where I like the black and white version better than the color (see below), but the color’s pretty good, too, if I may say so. Have a dreamy weekend, tout le monde.

EDIT (2015-11-9): Whoops! Looks like I forgot to add the color version! Here it is:

Ambush bug (Phymata sp.) lying in wait amid a field of Queen Anne’s Lace flowers.