I had a good showing at this year’s WGNSS (Webster Groves Nature Study Society) Photo Contest—held last night at the Webster Groves Public Library. All four photos that I entered—one each in four different categories—were selected for a prize: 1st place in the Invertebrates category, 2nd place in the Bonus category (Missouri Species of Conservation Concern), 3rd place in the Vertebrates category, and Honorable Mention in the Plants and Fungi category. There was a fifth category (Habitats and Landscapes), but I don’t take many landscape photos (at least, not with my “real” camera) so did not submit to that category. Three of the four photos are now eligible (along with 13 others) for the Grand Prize (the bonus category is not included in the grand prize competition), which will be selected via popular vote at the WGNSS Spring Banquet, to be held next month at the Piper Palm House in Tower Grove Park.
1st Place – Invertebrates
The spotted orb weaver (Neosconacrucifera) builds an impressively large web each night, which it consumes in the morning before hiding during the day. Despite their size, they are not aggressive and are of no medical significance. This female was photographed at Pinewoods Lake Recreation Area in Carter Co., Missouri on 11 August 2015.
2nd Place – Bonus (Missouri Species of Conservation Concern)
The swift tiger beetle (Cylindera celeripes) was unknown to occur in Missouri until it was discovered in the critically imperiled loess hilltop prairies of extreme northwestern Missouri in 2010 by Ted MacRae and Chris Brown. The species was designated a Missouri Species of Conservation Concern due to the critically imperiled nature of the habitat in which it lives, and detailed surveys since its discovery in the state have shown the species to be limited to just four loess hilltop prairie remnants – all under conservation management – in Holt and Atchison Counties. This individual was photographed on a sparsely vegetated red clay/gypsum exposure in mixed-shortgrass prairie at Alabaster Caverns State Park in Woodward Co., Oklahoma on 10 June 2009.
3rd Place – Vertebrates
The eastern hognose snake (Heterodon platirhinos) is famous for their variety of defensive behaviors, ranging from the innocuous (puffing their neck and hissing) to the repugnant (vomiting) to the extreme (feigning death). This individual was photographed at Sam A. Baker State Park in Wayne Co., Missouri, on 23 April 2012.
Honorable Mention – Plants & Fungi
The flesh-colored flowers of pawpaw (Asimina triloba) are pollinated by flies more typically attracted to fermenting substances rather than “typical” flower-loving flies seeking pollen and nectar, which they attract by emitting yeasty-smelling fermentation volatiles — rare in floral scent blends.These pawpaw flowers were photographed in mesic forest on an east-facing slope along the lower Wappapello Section of the Ozark Trail in Wayne Co., Missouri on 10 April 2010.
Wow! All four of your photos are excellent, but I like the spider photo the best and the paw paw flowers second best, with the hog nose a close third! Really great job Ted. Loved seeing your photos.
Beetles In The Bush 
Wow! All four of your photos are excellent, but I like the spider photo the best and the paw paw flowers second best, with the hog nose a close third! Really great job Ted. Loved seeing your photos.
Thanks, Rob. As always, your kind comments are much appreciated.