Mutzenmore Photography

Mutzenmore Photography Welcome to Mutzenmore Photography's page! Mutzenmore Photography is located in North Oakland County, Michigan.

We specialize in, but are not limited to, photographing animals and people. We offer various services and packages for you to choose from.

Spotted Beebalm (Monarda punctata) aka Horsemint. This gorgeous, native perennial is my favorite in the mint family. I...
07/23/2026

Spotted Beebalm (Monarda punctata) aka Horsemint. This gorgeous, native perennial is my favorite in the mint family. It's closely related to Wild Bergamot. Both are blooming now in this area. Spotted Beebalm is much more drought tolerant. It prefers dry, sandier soils, in sunny areas, and can get 3 feet tall. The large, elegant blossoms that can continue to bloom through September, attract many butterflies and bees. It's also a host plant for several Lepidoptera. Spotted Beebalm can reseed, which is a good thing, as it can act as a short lived perennial. Deer tend to leave it alone because they aren't fond of the scent, which is similar to oregano. You can zoom in on this image to better see all the detail.

So Begins Another Day
07/23/2026

So Begins Another Day

A Healing Area
07/21/2026

A Healing Area

Brown-hooded Owlet (Cucullia convexipennis.) I'm surprised that I've never seen one until today, as they're supposedly p...
07/18/2026

Brown-hooded Owlet (Cucullia convexipennis.) I'm surprised that I've never seen one until today, as they're supposedly pretty common, not to mention the brilliant coloring and pattern that really sticks out. This one was 2 inches long, munching away in my garden. Host plants for these caterpillars are various native asters and goldenrods (I have many of both.) When it's ready to pupate, the caterpillar descends to the soil, where it buries itself and makes a silken cocoon. There, it overwinters. Leaf litter helps it survive the cold. Brown-hooded Owlets emerge as adult moths from June to September in this area. They have a 1.5 to 2-inch wingspan and are excellent pollinators. They're also a food source for various animals, especially bats and birds.

Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis). It's hard to miss these bright scarlet native perennials. Some can grow 5 feet tal...
07/16/2026

Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis). It's hard to miss these bright scarlet native perennials. Some can grow 5 feet tall, but the ones I see are usually 2-3 feet tall. They thrive in wet soil, in sun or part shade, and can bloom from July to September. Hummingbirds love the long, tubular flowers.

American Lady Emerges. Eight days after the American Lady caterpillar pupated, the chrysalis became transparent and you...
07/14/2026

American Lady Emerges. Eight days after the American Lady caterpillar pupated, the chrysalis became transparent and you could see the butterfly snuggled inside. By late afternoon, it eclosed from the chrysalis that's hanging next to it in this image. The butterfly must hang until its wings harden, exposing the stunning underside of the wings which remind me of stained glass. The upperside is orange, black and white, and looks like a totally different butterfly.

Painted Turtle and Blues Gills. I was looking at aquatic plants in a pond, on a hot summer day, when a Painted Turtle a...
07/13/2026

Painted Turtle and Blues Gills. I was looking at aquatic plants in a pond, on a hot summer day, when a Painted Turtle and some Blue Gills swam by. Such a peaceful scene. I was tempted to jump in and join them. Both are quite abundant around here and the Painted Turtle is the official state reptile of Michigan.

"Who Knows?" While working in a public native garden yesterday, I spotted these curious, tiny creatures. None of us ha...
07/12/2026

"Who Knows?" While working in a public native garden yesterday, I spotted these curious, tiny creatures. None of us had ever seen anything like this. They appeared to be some kind of nymphs that had just hatched out of those glowing orange eggs. This is a great example of why I don't simply trust even the "best" ID aps, which have given various IDs in this case... including Milkweed Bugs, Leaf-footed Bugs, and Wheel Bugs. However, deeper research at home has me thinking these might be Spiny Assassin Bug or Helmeted Squash Bug nymphs. If anyone can verify, for sure, what these interesting insects are, please let me know.

American Lady Pupating Series. I've found many cocoons and chrysalises in my life, but this was the first time I was in...
07/12/2026

American Lady Pupating Series. I've found many cocoons and chrysalises in my life, but this was the first time I was in the right place, at the right time, to actually see a butterfly transform and was it ever cool. I can see why I missed it in the past because the entire transformation happened rather quickly. With this American Lady, I saw the hanging caterpillar start to shake and the skin started to crack from the bottom and work its way up. By the time I grabbed my camera, the dark skin was pushed to the top (see first image in this series.) Then the pupa started spinning its bottom rapidly until the dark skin got knocked off. (The blur in the second pic shows the spinning motion.) The third pic is from the other side which looks quite different. If you zoom in on it, you can see the bottom half looks like it's decorated with a string of pearls. The colors of the chrysalis were vibrant at first, but as it hung perfectly still and hardened it became much duller, better camouflage.

In my previous post/photo (2 days ago) I said that I found American Lady caterpillars, on my Pussytoes, that looked like...
07/06/2026

In my previous post/photo (2 days ago) I said that I found American Lady caterpillars, on my Pussytoes, that looked like they were ready to pupate. Sure enough, yesterday one of them stopped eating and started wandering, which is typical behavior when they're ready to pupate. It crawled up a branch, attached itself to it, and hung like that overnight (see photo on the left.) This morning it molted a final time, skin fell to the ground, and became a chrysalis (see photo on right.) In about 8-12 days an adult American Lady butterfly will emerge from this 🥰

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North Oakland County
Michigan

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