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Gnarly hit at f/1.8
Gnarly hit at f/1.8
kanaj


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Up Close & Wide Open (DPL2026 Playoff 2A) (Standard Editing)
Collection: Portfolio
Camera: Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, S25 Ultra
Location: Carmine, Texas (USA)
Date: Sep 9, 2026
Aperture: 1.8
ISO: 40
Shutter: 1/180
Date Uploaded: Sep 12, 2026

 A robber fly, having just caught its paper wasp lunch, splayed wide open on its back and beginning to consume it from below. I couldn't help picturing this broad-daylight capture as something like a noir mob hit. I'm also guessing that many will find this to be an unsettling or "ugly" picture to look at, unfortunately. But I personally find it fascinating; it's the first time I've ever seen the "apex predator" of the insect world at work in real time.

Statistics
Place: 24 out of 48
Avg (all users): 5.8511
Avg (participants): 5.7429
Avg (non-participants): 6.1667
Views since voting: 22
Views during voting: 78
Votes: 47
Comments: 6
Favorites: 0

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AuthorThread
 09/28/2026 11:54:25 AM
yikes, nice capture.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/28/2026 10:52:55 AM
Actually, at the time of this capture, both bugs were still alive. The wasp was in the process of dying, of course. I didn't stick around to wait for the robber fly to finish--I already looked like a nut laying on my belly on the sidewalk outside the rural post office to capture this one. :-P The postmaster came out thinking I might have been having a medical emergency, but when I showed her what I was watching she was equally fascinated.
 09/28/2026 12:16:08 AM
absolutely love this Jonathan ..
and there's nothing ugly about it ..
I'm finding it very interesting that the robberfly consumed the wasp while upside down .. I've seen everything but that ..
it's an exciting find and so unusual .. did you stick around to see if the robberfly flew off with the wasp after a while xx
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
09/27/2026 11:13:14 PM
fascinating mess of a wrestle. I didn't think dragonflies worked on their backs.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/27/2026 03:23:01 PM
Interesting find well captured. Is the top one feeding on the down one or are they both dead?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 09/24/2026 04:04:10 PM
Composition: 7 [w:1]
Technical: 10 [w:2]
Creativity: 8 [w:3]
Appeal: 6 [w:4]
Challenge: 5 [w:2]
Overall Weighted Average Score: 7

Note: *Weighted category voting.
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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