So, it's been awhile. But I'm back. I'm starting a little early for 2011, so in the days preceding that turn of the calendar, I will post some reminiscent pieces I captured this past year that I think are noteworthy. A little background on this one. In my little organic garden, I decided to grow okra this past year. It did very well, thanks to a green thumb, some naturally enriched soil, sun, rain, and this wicked yet shy predator. Midway through the growing season, I noticed that my okra was being ravaged by a hoard of ants. Not that the ants were doing any harm themselves, but they were doing a little farming themselves and their cash crop was aphid. Thousands of the little ant slaves roamed freely across the open plains of my large okra leaves. Soon my okra began to show devastating wear and tear and I feared the worst for my new crop (I don't even like okra, really, but the flowers are beautiful!) I tried several organic pesticides but nothing worked. I was at a loss. After a few weeks I noticed my plants were perking up so I investigated. Much to my surprise, I couldn't find one aphid and zero ants. I mean nil! As I pondered this miracle of possible mass migration, I spied her. There she was! Long, slender, beautiful and terrifying. Like an ancient and terrible dinosaur tearing through vast fields of baby sheep, this seductive predator decimated the aphid and ant population. Why she chose my garden, I'll never really know, but I had TONS of okra. I enjoyed her presence for an all too brief amount of time, and then as quickly and quietly as she came, she was gone. However, I did get the opportunity to photograph her. Her smile being so enigmatic, she felt her best asset was her pair of long legs, with which she lured many a hungry agrarian to their death. So that's what I shot. Maybe I'll see her again next year. Or maybe I'll be visited by another of her species. At any rate, her presence was appreciated and her services were free. So I can hardly complain.
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