July 18, 2021 – Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
I recorded 34 butterflies during this reporting period. The annual total is 186.
Butterfly Sightings 7/17/2021- 7/22/2021
07/18/2021 Zebra Swallowtail – Eurytides marcellus 1
07/18/2021 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail – Papilio glaucus 1
07/18/2021 Skipper sp. 10
07/18/2021 American Lady – Vanessa virginiensis 1
07/18/2021 Horace’s Duskywing – E. horatius 1
07/20/2021 Horace’s Duskywing – E. horatius 1
07/20/2021 Zebra Swallowtail – Eurytides marcellus 1
07/20/2021 Silver-spotted Skipper – Epargyreus clarus 1
07/20/2021 Fiery Skipper – Hylephila phyleus 1
07/20/2021 Common Buckeye – Junonia coenia 1
07/20/2021 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail – Papilio glaucus 1
07/20/2021 Red-banded Hairstreak – Calycopis cecrops 1
07/20/2021 American Lady – Vanessa virginiensis 1
07/21/2021 Common Buckeye – Junonia coenia 1
07/21/2021 American Lady – Vanessa virginiensis 1
07/21/2021 Fiery Skipper – Hylephila phyleus 3
07/21/2021 Horace’s Duskywing – E. horatius 2
07/21/2021 Ocola Skipper – Panoquina ocola 1
07/21/2021 Silver-spotted Skipper – Epargyreus clarus 1
07/22/2021 Silver-spotted Skipper – Epargyreus clarus 1
07/22/2021 Horace’s Duskywing – E. horatius 1
07/22/2021 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail – Papilio glaucus 1
The most thrilling butterfly moment this week: seeing a Zebra Swallowtail two days apart. (There had also been one in early June.)
July 18, 2021 – Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
July 18, 2021 – Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
July 18, 2021 – Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
July 20, 2021 – Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
Plenty of Grass Skippers (Hesperiinae), especially Fiery and Ocola, go uncounted in my unofficial survey. These insects flit from flower to flower, bump into each, dart away suddenly and land near or far, making it hard to get accurate counts. As I’m not confident of knowing these skippers by sight, it is a time-consuming effort to photograph and verify those that show up around the garden. So for them I am mostly selecting one or two to represent the group.
July 18, 2021 – Ocola Skipper (Panoquina ocola)
July 21, 2021 – Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus) 1
This year Silver-spotted Skipper and Horace’s Duskywing are regularly seen, not in huge numbers but one or two nearly every day. Common Buckeye and American Lady also are more frequent this year.
July 21, 2021 – Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia)
July 21, 2021 – American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis)
July 21, 2021 – American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis)
Tuesday I photographed my first Red-banded Hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops) of the year. Previously I had seen only one in July 2014 and a second in August 2015.
July 20, 2021 – Red-banded Hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops)
Eastern Tiger Swallowtails are always a welcome sight.
July 20, 2021 – Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)
Rudbeckia laciniata (Green-Headed Coneflower) is attractive to butterflies, bees and many other insects.
July 18, 2021 – Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)
July 20, 2021 – Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)
Exploring for butterflies this summer in my garden has been a fun project.
pbmGarden 