Harvester Butterfly

Hi, Today is a day of very  mixed emotions as our long time best friend, Buttercup our Golden Retriever, passed away. She will be missed immensely. The evening that we buried her, here on our farm, it was very humid and into the upper eighties at six PM. Everything went well with the burial and after, while walking back to the house, a Harvester Butterfly landed on my son's forearm. We were both quite sweaty and the Harvester stayed on him for almost the hundred yards back to the house. I picked up my camera and took a dozen shots. Finally my son brushed it off and away it went. I have never seen nor expected to see this butterfly here as I have never seen Woolly Aphids, their caterpillar host food. The larvae of the small, uncommon harvester butterfly are the only strictly carnivorous butterfly caterpillars in the United States. I usually have to go to Lancaster County or Delaware to see one of these. A very mixed emotion day for sure. My best to you, Denis

Least Skipper

Hi, Today we have the smallest or 'Least' Skipper in our lineup. The Least Skipper is a weak flyer, usually in damp grassy areas. The Least flies in and through the tops of the grass and is quite common. In fact this year it is one of my most common butterflies seen here. I do have a damp low pasture well suited for them. Usually not a showy individual but still seen close has some nice features. Here is today's picture and some taken 8 years ago with a Nikon 990 Coolpix camera. A great camera for macro shots also. G'night, Denis

Clouded Sulphur

Hello again. Today I am posting a not too unusual butterfly that is probably overlooked by the casual observer. It is a Clouded Sulphur or Clouded Orange Sulphur. I have heard and saw it described in books both ways. This butterfly is a little larger than a Cabbage White that most folks would think that it is. If one looks closely or has a good photo it shows quite a lot of detail not seen in the Cabbage White butterfly. A fairly common mid to late summer butterfly of open fields and edges. Have a great day and keep cool as it is  hot and humid here in South Eastern PA today. Denis

Pipevine Swallowtail

Hi, This is a butterfly that is more difficult for me to find in this area. The host plant is Dutchman's Pipevine, a more southerly plant. I am in USDA zone 6b and the Dutchman's only grows into zone 8. However I now find some commercial varieties that can grow well in my zone .We shall see on that one next year. Here  is my more elusive butterfly nectaring on a Butterfly Bush. Denis

Little Yellow

Hi again, Today at mid-day I took a walk in our Chester County Park (Nottingham Park) and at the time it was in the mid eighties. A partly sunny/cloudy sky and high humidity. Why mid-day is only because of time restraints and not as much choice. The walk was hot along with the hilly, barren, rocky road and mostly stagnant air until you reached a hilltop.  There was not much butterfly activity and few nectar sources, except for along Black Run, the only stream going through the park. At Black Run and the extreme eastern boundary of the park I saw a very small yellow butterfly flying down the opposite hillside and knew I had a Little Yellow. We usually do not get Little Yellows here as much as fifty miles further south and along the Chesapeake Bay. A stronghold or place usually seen would be Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge has a butterfly garden and surrounding areas have a lot of Partridge pea (Cassia fasciculata) , the host plant for the yellow. At home my Partridge Pea has already bloomed, set seed and dried up in the heat. Here is a shot of today's Little Yellow . Best to you, Denis

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Hi on this hot summer day. Here in Southeastern PA it is hot and we are in a draughty condition. Our berry bushes are withering as is the fruit on them. The fruit is not sweet as it should be at this time of year either. The exception is Blackberry that is doing much better or even good. Nectar sources are slim, however there are a few blooms for the butterflies to nectar on now. One planted flower that I find to be great in summer is Lantana. Lantana will not survive winter if left out here in Pennsylvania, so I have to dig them up and bring them in the basement whatever plants I want to save over the winter.  Yes, a lot of work but I feel it is worth it every summer. I have about a 50% survival rate for each overwintered Lantana. Generally I dig up and save 15-18 plants. Here is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail  nectaring on Lantana. Have a great day! Denis

Silvery Checkerspot

Hi, It is another hot day, but somewhat cooler than days past. Today I went to Turkey Point, just below North East, MD. Turkey Point has a lot of fields, mostly mowed to lawn height, and the edges do have some nectar source flowers. This area is mowed many times a summer and is never, never used by visitors as they are only interested in seeing the lighthouse at the trails end. The walk is one mile out and one mile return, so most are only interested in getting there and back as quickly as possible. The only other folks to use the paths are fishermen and they do not fish from the grass as it is over a hundred feet above the water. The park is now being invaded by 'Mile a Minute' weed in many areas and is/will be problematic in years from now. Today I saw about three dozen Silvery Checkerspot butterflies, mostly on the paths and grassy areas next to the path/road. There was Yarrow and some other flower in bloom with a white top that also attracted these butterflies. Here is a couple of pix of the Silvery Checkerspot from this morning. Denis

Peck’s Skipper

Hi on this wonderfully hot summer afternoon. I took a short walk along the path/farm road to the woods and back. Then along the row of Butterfly bushes along my lane. At the end of the yard on a Potted (5 gallon) Lantana I spotted my first Peck's Skipper. It was a little jumpy, however I did manage to get a few shots off before it flew away. Pecks is a fairly common skipper at this time frame here. Quite colorful and somewhat similar to a previous post of a Mulberry Wing butterfly. Have a cool day if you can. Denis

 and a Mulberry Wing for comparison below.

Common Checkered Skipper

Hi again, Here is a regular in early summer each year. These are usually easy to find in or around the yard as they are seen in White or Aldino Clover. These guy fly along the ground and patrol an area of grass that is not too large, so you can usually follow them. Here is today's pic and another from 6 years ago. Denis

Pearl Crescent

Happy 4th of July, Independance Day. Today is very hot near a hundred degrees and not too many butterflies are out in mid-day heat. So here I am posting butterfly pics in the heat of the afternoon.  I took this picture earlier this morning after a short and light 'T' storm pre-dawn. The air was still quite nice after the  storm passed but quickly changed  to a warmer air by the minute after the sun made its' appearance. Here is a Pearl Crescent  from today and one from yesteryear too. Denis

Red-banded Hairstreak

Hi, and yet another butterfly showing up here. This is a Red-banded Hairstreak, about dime to nickle sized butterfly. These Hairstreak family members can fly in dizzying acrobatic flight and you easily lose sight of them, especially on breezy and or shadowy conditions. Usually a gorgeous butterfly, even the more plain ones. Here is a full pic and then the same one cropped. Have a great day, Denis

Spicebush Swallowtail

Hello again, here we have one of the larger and better known butterflies that is easily seen by all. It is a Spicebush Swallowtail and nectaring on Butterfly bush or Budelia. I have about a dozen butterfly bushes with most planted along my lane and the remainder around the house area. The ones around the house are actually volunteers, whereas the lane bushes I planted years ago. Along with the many other host and nectar source plants that are both natural and ones I planted, I am expanding yearly on species specific plants. I also plant many annual plants to augment the Perennial plants that are here as well. Here is a pic of the Spicebush Swallowtail on the Butterfly Bush. Have a great day, Denis

Horace's Duskywing

Hi, and have a great 4th of July. Yesterday I took a short walk at mid-day and found this, more or less, plain looking butterfly. It is a Horace's Duskywing and was sitting on spent mushroom soil. We usually get some Horace's each and every year here on the farm in July and August. Have a Great 4th, Denis



Mourning Cloak butterfly

Hi again, Here is a butterfly that is usually one of the earliest to be seen in any year, and probably the last too. The Mourning Cloak probably lives the longest life of any butterfly we have in our region, about nine months at the longest. It is beautiful and looks like velvet up close, especially on a cold late February or March day. Have a great day, Denis

Dun Skipper Buutterfly

Hi, Here is a 'plain Jane' butterfly if there ever was one. It is a Dun Skipper and is quite plain and unmarked as a rule. This individual is a fresh and they look like they have a 'Golden Head' when freshly emerged. Soon the golden wears away and they are quite dull overall after a short time. So I was fortunate to catch an image while the golden head was still visible. Here is a shot of the Dun Skipper while fresh, Denis

Mulberry Wing butterfly

Hello, Here is another new butterfly for me that I saw last Saturday on the  Nothern Lancaster County, PA NABC butterfly count. We found this in a power line cut of a bottomland that was quite wet in places. The  Mulberry Wing seems to be a 'locally common' butterfly in wetlands from the discription in the book. The wing pattern is quite distinctive and should be a good aid in ID. Have a great day, Denis

Black Dash butterfly

Hi, This past Saturday I had the pleasure to meet two people who were doing the NABC's  (North American Butterfly Count) usually done during the 4th of July week. Since I am only a couple of miles from Lancaster County, I decided to do their count. I had E-mailed some info the previous week and from their website obtained directions to a meeting place for this event. I arrived to find between a half dozen participants already there. I joined a father and son team from the Lititz, PA area and we did the area of extreme northern Lancaster and Lebanon Counites border. We did mostly power line cuts and some open brushy fields and found over thirty species. I did well, by my asperations, with three new 'life' butterflies. They were; Black Dash, Mulberry Wing and Baltimore Checkerspot. Great folks to spend the day with!  Here is a Black Dash on Common Milkweed, Denis