ヒガンバナ Wild Amaryllis in the woods

September, it's time for higambana. The red flowers, a kind of amaryllis are lining the rice fields of Kyushu, creating a nice contrast with the golden yellow-green color of mature rice that is about to be harvested. This year I found the same flowers here in the woods, That splash of red, accentuated by the soft sunbeams of the late afternoon in a darkish green forest made it quite a surprise.

The big butterflies that like these flowers are swallowtails. Below the Red Helen

Another swallowtail, the Spangle,