# Took some pictures in "mini Malaysia" yesterday :)



## ABbuggin (Jan 15, 2010)

Well, being the bug lover type, the cold weather was starting to get to me.  Was getting tired of taking pictures with natural light and backgrounds so I took an orchid mantis and my S. bicornis widow (hopefully her new husband arrives alive LOL) to the butterfly house at the museum I work at. I'll also include a few pics I took last year.  I wasn't able to take as many pics as I wanted (had a gongylus female with me) because people kept on asking me questions about the mantids, in addition, the foggers turned on after about an hour :lol: 

Do realize, these pictures are a lot clearer, photobucket blurrs them some. I'm working on transferring photos to flikr (much better quality!) but its taking time.

A few shots from one half (it's a 5,000 square foot place so the other end isn't in the pics)












:wub: :wub:































Cont.


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## ABbuggin (Jan 15, 2010)

Some older pics:

(these are from flikr, much better. B) )


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## gadunka888 (Jan 15, 2010)

wow nice pics! i like the second last one


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## yeatzee (Jan 15, 2010)

very impressive!!


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## ABbuggin (Jan 15, 2010)

Thanks!

I didn't have my tripod with me yesterday, so all of the photos (even the flikr ones) are all offhand with only an 80-125 shutter speed. Waaaaaay too slow to eliminate body movement. Never-the-less, they turned out "ok". I was "taking photos" for about an hour, but I was really only taking pics for about 15 minutes. People couldn't stop in wonder at the schizo, orchid, and vioiln mantids. I was educating for a while lol. I even had to pry my female orchid and schizo from the botanist, he couldn't stop taking pics of them. :lol:


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## charleyandbecky (Jan 15, 2010)

Those are wonderful pictures. What kind of museum do you work at? It looks like the place I got married (State Botanical Garden of Georgia).

The s. bicornis is really a lovely picture. I really like those.

Rebecca


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## beginner entomologist (Jan 15, 2010)

Great pictures! The leaf insect is awesome.


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## C.way (Jan 15, 2010)

amazing "forest", what sort of nepenthes is the butterfly resting on?


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## ZoeRipper (Jan 15, 2010)

Where is this place, I need to go.


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## PhilinYuma (Jan 16, 2010)

Very nice!


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## Katnapper (Jan 16, 2010)

Great job, Andrew... and I mean your actual workplace/job, hehe! I'm envious. Would love to have an environment like that to take mantids to and photograph.  I bet you inspire people to become interested in mantids too... which is a very good thing!


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## Rick (Jan 16, 2010)

Great pics. I need to check this place out.


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## ismart (Jan 16, 2010)

That place looks great! It even got benches for you to chill out on and drink a couple a 40's B) :lol:


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## ABbuggin (Jan 16, 2010)

charleyandbecky said:


> Those are wonderful pictures. What kind of museum do you work at? It looks like the place I got married (State Botanical Garden of Georgia).The s. bicornis is really a lovely picture. I really like those.
> 
> Rebecca


It is the Museum of Life and Science (Durham, NC) They have really been expanding the past 5 years or so/ Now, just as much of it is outside as inside! :blink: I always thought it woudl be a cool place to get married.  



> Great pictures! The leaf insect is awesome


Thanks! It's actually one of the better off hand shots I've taken there.  



> amazing "forest", what sort of nepenthes is the butterfly resting on?


I couldn't agree more.  It isn't a nepenthes (we don't have those in the butterfly house). I took that about a year ago so I don't remember what it was.



> Where is this place, I need to go.


Durham, NC. I'd be more than happy to give anybody a tour.  



> Very nice!


Thanks.  



> Great job, Andrew... and I mean your actual workplace/job, hehe! I'm envious. Would love to have an environment like that to take mantids to and photograph. wink.gif I bet you inspire people to become interested in mantids too... which is a very good thing! biggrin.gif


Lol, I don't always work there, it depends on their budget (they have been taking a hit with the local economy lately). I have worked there a few years, but have been there for over 6 years volunteering.  



> Great pics. I need to check this place out.


You bet you do.  Can't wait until the Butterfly Bash (smaller version of Bugfest)



> That place looks great! It even got benches for you to chill out on and drink a couple a 40's cool.gif laugh.gif


Lol, they are actually air conditioned. :lol: The butterfly house is always 80 degrees with 80% humidity. Orchids manids love it lol.


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## kamakiri (Jan 17, 2010)

Nice work, Andrew!


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## Matticus (Jan 21, 2010)

Andrew, do you know a Hannah Rose Miller who works there? I think she mostly does birthday parties. I went to high school with her fiancé, and last year when I rescued some kittens they adopted one of them. She was telling me that they had some neat bugs at the museum (phasmids, she thought) but she didn't know what they were exactly. She also mentioned that the baby sloths are the most awesome thing ever.


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