unknown french butterfly

[it344x]

Hi everybody,
It's been a while since I last posted, but I purchased a sigma 150mm macro lens for my birthday and have gone bananas with it recently , as you would.

Anyway, in France I took this , and am not entirely sure what it is

http://www.mgnastro.org/gifs/bfly1.jpg ( 1/160 sec@f2.8, ISO 200, no tripod )

but also took this too

http://www.mgnastro.org/gifs/hornet1.jpg ( 1/1600sec exp,@f9, ISO 800, no tripod )
and I am not convinced it is a hornet either - if anyone could identify either I'd be jolly grateful.


I must say I really really like this lens , even though it is slow focussing

regards

Martin
( http://www.mgnastro.org/wildlife )


ps. other test shots with this lens
http://www.mgnastro.org/photos/red_d_fly1.jpg
http://www.mgnastro.org/photos/red_d_fly2.jpg
http://www.mgnastro.org/photos/red_d_fly3.jpg

http://www.mgnastro.org/gifs/wolf2.jpg

[Dave McCormick]

Oh happy birthday, sigma 150mm, cool

ok, I think the first one might be Brintesia circe (great banded graying) was it like this one? :http://www.leps.it/SpeciesPages/BrintCirce.htm

I don't think second is a hornet either, but I cannot seem to figure out what it is, nice pic of it though.
Sure someone can identify it easily if they knew what it was, At first I thought ichimonum wasp or potter or sand wasp of some kind, don't know

[Padfield]

Dave is quite right with the great banded grayling. The white mark on the costa, basally of the main white band, distinguishes this from other graylings.

The wasp, I think, is a spider-hunting wasp, Cryptocheilus comparatus. I don't know anything about wasps but yours is the spitting image of those illustrated in my old Chinery field guide, right down to the black wing-tips.

Guy

[it344x]

Thank you Dave & Guy.

The Cryptocheilus was really bugging me

Here is a close up crop of the Brintesia circe from another shot.. ( still processing all of my holiday shots )

www.mgnastro.org/gifs/bfly2.jpg

kind regards
Martin
( www.mgnastro.org/wildlife )