The clouds furrowed over paradise, signaling an impending storm — and it looked to be a big one.
I hightailed it back to camp on Isla Palenque to wait out the rain so I could continue shooting under clear skies. Pausing on the trail to make sure my bag was zipped up tightly, I noticed something funny in the bushes and stepped in for a closer look. The descending spirals of a minuscule pale green vine delivered the falling rain to the forest floor in a corkscrew trickle: a raindrop waterslide. I prolonged my detour, no longer concerned about getting wet and with my macro lens at the ready.
View the slideshow for my best images from the wake and aftermath of a “ten year storm” that rocked the beautiful island of Isla Palenque, Panama last summer:
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Alter Ego Butterfly
Even a butterfly can have a dark side -- these tiny butterflies are commonly seen battling one another for the precious patches of sunlight that penetrate the canopy.
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Bad Hair Day
Adorable, yes, but you wouldn’t want to pet this little creature. Furry caterpillars like this one rely on stinging hairs to ward off predators. Irritation & inflammation resulting from contact with his fragile hairlike spines will keep birds and other creatures at bay so he can reach adult mothhood.
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Busy Bees
A hive of very confused bees works hard to rebuild their home after it took a topple during the big storm. I eased closer and tested their tolerance of visitors to their territory – they seemed friendly, and let me grab this closeup without issue.
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Connect More Closely
"To grow mature is to separate more distinctly, to connect more closely." -- Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Austrian poet
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Green-Eyed Girl
A katydid: more closely related to crickets than to grasshoppers, these are often the true culprits when you hear the “crickets” echoing through the jungle. This one is an aberration; more commonly seen is the bright green variety with wings that look almost identical to leaves.
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Water Slide
The descending spirals of a minuscule pale green vine received the falling raindrops to guide them in a corkscrew trickle onto the forest floor.
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Big Tree, Huge Leaf
The giant leaves of the Panama Tree are useful in making a tea that relieves insomnia and soothes a cough. This one has us examining form and structure, matching our fingers to its ribs and comparing our veins, observing the tiny processes at work within the leaf.
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Jungle Jewel
I’d observed this brightly-colored beetle high on a palm leaf a few days before but he disappeared as soon as I tried to get close. A few days later, I noticed a sparkle in the sand nearby. Sure enough, he’d come down for a visit.
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Beautiful Assassin
Different species of assassin bug can be found all over the world – these insects jump on the backs of other bugs and grab a quick lunch on the go. I’d never seen one this colorful before, nor with such unique flag decorations on its hind legs. Definitely an Isla Palenque beauty!
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Slow Eater
A tiny snail out for a rainy day walk. With an infinitesimal set of teeth on a file-like tongue, this little guy noshes on leaves, flowers, and plants while making his sluggish rounds on the jungle floor.
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8 Legs and Webbed Feet
My first impression: that this spider has webbed feet. Turns out it’s an arrow-shaped orb-weaver species of the genus Micrathena. The brilliant colors indicate that this is probably a female, meaning she’ll soon be laying her eggs and dying with the autumn. Here, she repairs her web after a storm.
After the storm, I noticed new patterns emerging in the activities of the island’s creatures, down to the smallest members. The night sounds changed; different chirps and calls echoed through the forest, and the days showed the appearance of moisture-loving species you won’t see outside green or rainy season in Panama.
I learned that if you wake up early enough after a heavy rain, you can see all the spiders repairing the damage done to their webs in the night. Strand by strand, they reweave their homes still drenched in dew.
Even as you’re en route to more active Panama adventures on Isla Palenque, a moment’s pause will show you there’s plenty going on on the forest floor. Fascinating tiny worlds open up if you’ll only take a second look at the hidden treasures in the undergrowth: jewel-bright bugs, intricate plant life, tiny ferns, and beautiful tendrils. I found copious opportunities to hone my macro photography skills on Isla Palenque.
Here are a couple of takeaways that will prove useful if you want to take a macro view of Isla Palenque’s ecosystems during your island visit:
Macro Photography Tips
Find a patch of sunlight. The closer you get to the specimen, the more your camera eclipses the available light. You’d think that the jungle would afford great lighting, but the shade produced by the thick canopy is actually quite pronounced. And your flash does not always provide a good solution, since they can be too intense for closeups, and your lens can cast a shadow on your subject.
What I found most effective: bringing the subject into a patch of sunlight. Obviously, this situational tip depends on the creature you’re trying to shoot, but this was my Plan A when I found something small I wanted to capture.
Shoot using a tripod and lengthen your shutter speed to let in more light. Trying to shoot handheld with a long exposure time will only result in a blurry picture unless your superpower is the ability to turn to stone, so my tripod was mandatory for cloudy-day macro photo shoots.
Simply sit still for a moment. Many of my favorite pictures from the island were unexpected encounters from pausing to tie my shoe, re-orient myself, or just sip some water and take it all in.
TAGS: Ecosystems Isla Palenque Must Read Nature Panama Panama Wildlife Photos Plant Life Wildlife
Post by Mike Corey
Meet our 2012 Isla Palenque Island Intern, Mike Corey: a 26-year-old world traveler with a background in biology and a serious yen for the wildest creatures and experiences on the planet! Discover Isla Palenque from behind the lens of this intrepid adventurer!
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