Sobralia callosa, visited by a local carpenter bee Xylocopa mordax

Because I live in the middle of a forest, when my orchid bloom they are sometimes visited by local birds and insects in search of nectar or pollen.  It is rare that I have the opportunity to take a photo of these visits.  The bee dislodged the pollen from the flowers but didn't take it.  The capenter bees, such as the one in the photo are important pollinators in the forest.

Gonatista grisea, a mantis, seen in the Rio Abajo forest, Puerto Rico

A friend, Alberto Alvarez, noticed this mantis had come into one of the Department of Natural and Environmental resources buildings in the forest.  We took photos of the insect and after that firmly but in a gentle manner, invited the mantis to leave the inside of the building and return to the forest.  We were successful in this.  No mantis were harmed during the taking of these photos.

Nasutitermes costalis, a tropical termite, makes its nuptial flight the night of the first strong rain of May. This is in the Rio Abajo Forest, Arecibo

In the Rio Abajo forest, in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, the termite Nasutermes costatus is very common.  It makes its nuptial flight, when the males and females emerge from the nest to found new colonies, during the month of May.  The reproductives come out after the first strong rain of May.  It has to rain at least an inch of precipitation for the termites to come out in numbers.  If it rains less than an inch, few or none may come out.  The number of reproductives vary from year to year, this is a nuptial flight in 2013, in 2015 their number was much more modest.

Adelpha gelania arecosa, a butterfly endemic of Puerto Rico

Top view

side view

Many years ago somebody told me never to leave my camera behind because you never knew when the opportunity to take an amazing, beautiful, odd or strange photo would arise.  I took this advice to heart and now I rarely go anywhere without my camera.  The photos of this butterfly are an example of an unexpected find.  I just by chance happened to be in the right place to take these photos.

Adelpha gelania arecosa is a butterfly that has been reported in Puerto Rico and Hispaniola.  Subspecies arecosa is endemic of Puerto Rico. These butterflies were photographed in Quebradillas, it is also found in Cambalache, Maricao and Toro Negro.

Heraclides pelaus puertoricensis, a black butterfly endemic of Puerto Rico

Heraclides pelaus puertoricensis

This butterfly, Heraclides pelaus puertoricensis (in some places its named portoricensis, perhaps it was named in the Porto Rico era) is endemic of Puerto Rico and is common in some of our forests.  Getting close enough to one to be able to take a good photo of this species is not that common an ocurrence.  For some unknown reason this butterfly was amazingly indifferent to my proximity which allowed me to get very close to it.  In the Rio Abajo forest you can often see these butterflies flying around blooming trees and shrubs.  However they are always alert and react quickly to any attempt to get close to them by flying away.  My guess is that this butterfly was doing was a display to attract the attention of other butterflies.  When I touched it lightly it flew away with no sign of infirmity, and its wing were in good condition which dispels the possibility that it was ill.