Creeping Zinnia - Sanvitalia procumbens with bumble bee in deep reflected ultraviolet photography

Today staged shots of a bumble bee sitting on a spring flower, Creeping Zinnia - Sanvitalia procumbens in reflected ultraviolet photography using my "work horse" UV filter, the Baader-U filter as well as my deeper into UV reaching Jupiter-U and Saturn-U filters. Lens was a CERCO 94mm quartz fluorite lens. Light source was a Xenon flash. All shots were done at about f8.

[click on image to see a larger one]

Visible light image:
 

UV image using Baader-U filter (approx. 320-395nm, effective peak approx. 375nm):
 

UV image using Jupiter-U filter (approx. 280-385nm, effective peak approx. 365nm):
 

UV image using Saturn-U filter (approx. 300-350nm, effective peak approx. 325nm):
 

Quadtriptych of the above:
 


Sanvitalia has a strong visible UV pattern, its petal tips are UV bright around 365nm and its center is quite UV dark, whereas the bumble bee is rather UV dark except its rear, which is UV bright around 375nm (as a signal to its colleagues that this flower is occupied?) and all this gets nicely visible also iun deep UV.

I have shown that also in simulated butterfly and bee vision HERE

Stay tuned, more will follow on that fascinating subject...

More info on this very interesting field may be found on my site http://www.pbase.com/kds315/uv_photos