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Updated on Thursday, September 2 at 09:23 AM ET
The most recently received Mail is at the top.


Grey-headed Negro-finch,©Tony Disley

2 Sep Pepper and Salt Skipper sighting, Laurens County, SC ["RAYMOND BENNETT" ]
2 Sep Transylvania Butterfly Count [Ruth Young ]
1 Sep re: pupa pest ["Loretta" ]
1 Sep Albemarle 9-4-10 []
31 Aug Re: pupa pest [Alex Netherton ]
31 Aug Little Yellows Galore in Guilford Co., NC [Dennis Burnette ]
30 Aug pupa pest [Van Burnette ]
30 Aug Croatan National Forest butterfly count aborted ["Legrand, Harry" ]
30 Aug Pitt County, August 30 ["Abdulali, Salman" ]
30 Aug Buncombe County ["Gail Lankford" ]
30 Aug Plantersville area including Samworth WMA ["Jack" ]
30 Aug Re: Results from the Southport, NC, count, August 28 ["Abdulali, Salman" ]
30 Aug Leonard's Skipper in Watauga Co., NC ["Legrand, Harry" ]
30 Aug RE: Yehl Skipper in North Raleigh!! ["Legrand, Harry" ]
30 Aug Yehl Skipper in North Raleigh!! [Matthew Daw ]
30 Aug Giant swallowtail in Leicester Patch ["Doug Johnston" ]
30 Aug Results from the Southport, NC, count, August 28 ["Legrand, Harry" ]
29 Aug Re: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10 [Dennis Burnette ]
29 Aug RE: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10 ["Legrand, Harry" ]
29 Aug Early report from Fort Fisher section of the Butterfly Count []
29 Aug Butterflies 8/29/10 Greensboro, NC Arboretum [Dennis Burnette ]
29 Aug Landsford Canal Butterflies ["Lynn B. Smith" ]
29 Aug Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10 [Dennis Burnette ]
29 Aug Carolina Butterfly Society Symposium: Photos []
29 Aug 7 Tiger swallowtail caterpillars/symposium ["Loretta" ]
29 Aug New butterfly house [Van Burnette ]
29 Aug RE: Mecklenburg County butterfly bonanza [TNT Sanders ]
28 Aug B'flies in N. Durham County ["Tom Krakauer" ]
27 Aug Re: Reynolda Gardens Meadow Butterflies [Alex Netherton ]
27 Aug Butterfly Symposium Detour [Dennis Burnette ]
27 Aug Report, CBS Field Trip Botanical Garden, Clemson, SC 8/21 [Dennis Burnette ]
27 Aug Hilton Pond 08/22/10 (Front Yards & Sourwoods) [Bill Hilton Jr. (RESEARCH) ]
26 Aug Augusta-Aiken Audubon Wings and Things field trip [Lois Stacey ]
26 Aug Augusta-Aiken Audubon Wings and Things field trip [Lois Stacey ]
26 Aug Reynolda Gardens Meadow Butterflies [nottke1 ]
26 Aug Some Caswell Co., NC, butterflies ["Legrand, Harry" ]
26 Aug nice count of Dukes' Skippers ["John Fussell" ]
25 Aug RE: Pitt County, August 25 ["Legrand, Harry" ]
25 Aug Pitt County, August 25 ["Abdulali, Salman" ]
25 Aug Transylvania NABA count [Ruth Young ]
25 Aug 2nd try photos intermediate Tiger swallowtail ["Loretta" ]
25 Aug 8/24/10 Butterflies in Western Guilford Co., NC [Dennis Burnette ]
25 Aug Re: Please remove from Listserv [Alex Netherton ]
25 Aug Re: [Alex Netherton ]
25 Aug Butterfly Symposium Sat. Aug. 28 [Dennis Burnette ]
25 Aug Re: Please remove from Listserv [Will Cook ]
25 Aug Please remove me from the listserv [Kathy Collier ]
25 Aug Please remove from Listserv ["Carol Asalon" ]
24 Aug RE: Triangle Butterflies ["Legrand, Harry" ]
24 Aug Mecklenburg County butterfly bonanza 8/24 [Alan Kneidel ]
24 Aug Please Remove from Listserv [Alex Curio ]
24 Aug No Subject [Jessica Messer ]
24 Aug photos, intermediate Tiger swallowtail ["Loretta" ]
24 Aug Re: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC [Alex Netherton ]
24 Aug Triangle Butterflies ["Richard Stickney" ]
24 Aug Checkered White report ["Legrand, Harry" ]
24 Aug RE: Tideland Nature Trail ["Legrand, Harry" ]
24 Aug RE: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC [TNT Sanders ]
23 Aug 8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies - Addendum [Dennis Burnette ]
23 Aug 8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies [Dennis Burnette ]
23 Aug Orange County= Monarchs & skippers []
23 Aug Green Comma ["Gail Lankford" ]
23 Aug Yauhanna Trails on 8-22 ["Jack" ]
22 Aug Sandy Mush Gamelands ["Doug Johnston" ]
22 Aug Painted Lady ["Gail Lankford" ]
22 Aug Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC ["John Fussell" ]
22 Aug Long-tailed Skipper in S. Durham County ["Tom Krakauer" ]
22 Aug Abundant Queens, Zebra Heliconian at Kiawah Island yesterday [Nathan Dias ]
22 Aug Francis Marion National Forest part 2 []
21 Aug Dukes' Skippers at Flanners Beach in Croatan National Forest ["John Fussell" ]
21 Aug Wake County, NC, butterflies ["Legrand, Harry" ]
20 Aug A few Bladen and Sampson Co., NC, butterflies ["Legrand, Harry" ]
20 Aug Pitt County, August 20 ["Abdulali, Salman" ]
20 Aug Re: About milkweed seed ["Jules Fraytet" ]
20 Aug About milkweed seed ["Jules Fraytet" ]
19 Aug Re: Durham Butterfly Count results []

Subject: Pepper and Salt Skipper sighting, Laurens County, SC
From: "RAYMOND BENNETT" <RBPHOTO AT prtcnet.com>
Date: Thu, 2 Sep 2010 07:20:52 -0700
My daughter observed a Pepper and Salt Skipper in her butterfly garden
at our home in Laurens County, SC, yesterday. She attempted to capture
it for closer observation, but it sat on the end of her net for a couple
of minutes allowing her to inspect it closely enough for an accurate
classification.

Sorry, no pictures this time. 
Subject: Transylvania Butterfly Count
From: Ruth Young <reyoung1227 AT bellsouth.net>
Date: Thu, 2 Sep 2010 08:38:25 -0400
The Transylvania Count was held on August 31st, about two weeks later  
than previous counts.  There were thirteen observers in the field,  
finding 52 species.  I do not have final individual totals yet but  
here is the list:

Pipevine Swallowtail
Black Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Spicebush Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Clouded Sulphur
Orange Sulphur
Cloudless Sulphur
Little Yellow
Sleepy Orange
Harvester
White M Hairstreak
Gray Hairstreak
Red-banded Hairstreak
Eastern Tailed Blue
Summer Azure
Variegated Fritillary
Diana Fritillary
Great Spangled Fritillary
Aphrodite Fritillary
Meadow Fritillary
Silvery Checkerspot
Pearl Crescent
Question Mark
Eastern Comma
Polygonia spp.
American Lady
Painted Lady
Red Admiral
Common Buckeye
Red-spotted Purple
Viceroy
Hackberry Emperor
Tawny Emperor
Northern Pearly-Eye
Carolina Satr
Common Wood-Nymph
Monarch
Silver-spotted Skipper
Horace's Duskywing
Wild Indigo Duskywing
Common Checkered-Skipper
Common Sootywing
Swarthy Skipper
Clouded Skipper
Least Skipper
Fiery Skipper
Sachem
Delaware Skipper
Zabulon Skipper
Dun Skipper
Lace-winged Roadside-Skipper
Eufala Skipper
Observers: Doug Johnston. Jamie Harrelson, Lynn Smith, Jerry Bright.  
Janie Owens, Gail Lankford, Bill Grow, Jim Nottke, Gene Schepkee,  
Nancy Baldwin, Bill Grow, Simon Thompson, Ruth Young



Subject: re: pupa pest
From: "Loretta" <butterflies_bg AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 22:41:59 -0400
In reference to the video sent by Van Burnette:
Several years ago, I had an aquarium with several Monarch caterpillars and
chrysalides.  One Monarch had turned dark, but not transparent, as is usual
for Monarchs.  Suddenly, I noticed all these tiny critters flying around in
the aquarium.  At a pinhole site on one of the chrysalides, these critters
were pouring out of the pinhole.  I'd never seen it before, but I knew the
other chrysalides were at risk, so I captured 2 of the fliers under glass,
where they died.  I had no choice but to release the rest of them.

When they died, I had to look under a 30x power magnifying glass to see they
were actually tiny wasps.

The next season, another Monarch exhibited the same coloring pattern, a tell
tale sign of the previous year.  I placed a drinking glass over the
chrysalis, capturing all the wasps.  By hand count, there were 150 parasitic
wasps!

I see three such wasps in the video, the first looks like a little blurb on
the chrysalis to the left of the subject, probably ovipositing, due to the
fact it is there the entire length of the video.  Another lands on the
center chrysalis and settles during the rest of the video.

Click on the link (or paste) below to see a parasitic wasp ovipositing in a 
black
swallowtail chrysalis.  The second is the parasitized Monarch chrysalis, and
the 150 wasps that hosted on the chrysalis.

Loretta Lutman

http://home.roadrunner.com/~pzg/LMLpics/predators/ 
Subject: Albemarle 9-4-10
From: KASTNERS AT aol.com
Date: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 18:41:45 EDT
The Midlands Chapter of CBS will be going to Albemarle Corp. in Orangeburg, 
 SC. this Saturday.  Please join us at 10:00.  We are hoping to find a  
second brood of the Goatwing Leafwing.  We will also be scouting Crotan for  
caterpillars.    Lunch will be at a nearby Arby's.  Please  let me know if you 
are coming.  Directions follow:
 
 
From  Columbia: 
Take  I-26 to 601 Turn right onto 601 and follow to Jct. of 301 Turn right 
onto  301/601 (John C. Calhoun Drive) Cross Railroad tracks, McDonald’s 
Right hand  corner.  
From  Charleston: 
Take  1-26 to 301B Turn right onto 301 towards Orangeburg. Continue on 
301/601 (John  C. Calhoun Drive).  
Continue  on 301/601 through Orangeburg. Pass the Edisto Gardens on the 
right at  stoplight(Riverside Dr. to Right and Stonewall Jackson Ave. to Left) 
Cross the  North Fork of the Edisto River. Get in left lane. 
Pass  Dodge’s Store to the left. NEXT Traffic Light (Cannon Bridge Road) 
Left turn  only. Turn Left onto Cannon Bridge Road. Go through 2 traffic 
lights and cross railroad tracks. Albemarle is to your left. Cox Wood 
Preserving 

is to the right.   
Turn  in at the third entrance (TRUCK Entrance) into Albemarle on the left. 
Park near  the tree line far right.  
From  Aiken: 
Follow  Highway 4 to Jct. of Hwy 301/601 North. Turn Left onto 301/601 
towards  Orangeburg 
From  Bamberg:  
Follow  Hwy 301/601 North towards Orangeburg. After Hwy 4, Next light is 
Rivelon Road.  Get in Right lane. You will pass Henry’s Travel Plaza on your 
right. Yield Right  at the next light onto Cannon Bridge Road.  
Go  through 2 traffic lights.  Cross railroad tracks. Albemarle is to your  
left. Cox Wood Preserving is to the right. 
Turn  in at the third entrance (TRUCK Entrance) into Albemarle on the left. 
Park near  the tree line far right. 
Marty
 
Marty &  Dave Kastner
Blythewood, SC
Richland  County
Subject: Re: pupa pest
From: Alex Netherton <danetherton AT charter.net>
Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:09:26 -0400
  I think those may indeed be parasitic wasps; I have seen one in a 
Tiger Swallowtail caterpillar we had at a summer camp. Instead of a 
lovely butterfly, there hatched out a wasp. Perhaps finer screen would 
help. I would also summarily execute any wasps that managed to emerge. 
The "unnatural" concentration of Monarch larvae may also be a problem. I 
might think of moving the whole shooting match further into a building 
with tight screen.
As for O.e., I might think of removing fresh eggs from the place they 
are laid and placing them on milkweed that is known to be free of it. It 
looks from research as though Monarchs have been dealing with this 
parasite for a long time (it is found only on Monarch and Queen, not 
only suggesting a relationship, but possibly a recent speciation), and 
may have a certain resistance to it, though they do worse under a heavy 
load. Also, people in FL have discovered that trimming back the milkweed 
to a 6" shoot with no leaves, thus forcing new O.e. free leaves helps. 
(Source: Wikipedia.org)

Very sweet sequence, except for the presence of the bees. One of the 
best I have seen.

Alex Netherton
Asheville, NC
danetherton AT charter.net
http://blueridgediscovery.com


On 8/30/2010 8:56 PM, Van Burnette wrote:
> I recently made a video of a monarch cat changing to a pupa.  While 
> looking at it I noticed what appears to be a small wasp?  attaching 
> itself to a pupa behind the changing cat.  If you have a chance look 
> at the vid. at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFA-C3HbonE
> If it is some kind of wasp, I am imagining it laying an egg in the 
> pupa.  I also see others in the background.  Is there anything I can 
> do to prevent this?  I am afraid that I also have OE infestation.
> I am keeping the cats in a 3 ft. screen cylinder 3 ft. tall. with a 
> shade cloth on top.
> Thanks for any help
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Van Burnette
> Hop'n Blueberry Farm
> 24 Middle Mountain Rd.
> Black Mountain, NC 28711
> www.hopnblueberryfarm.com 
> http://hopnblueberryfarm.blogspot.com/
>
>
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3103 - Release Date: 08/30/10 
14:34:00 

>
Subject: Little Yellows Galore in Guilford Co., NC
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:12:18 -0400
Mark Rose and I spent about 6.5 hours yesterday, 8/30/10, in the
northwestern corner of Guilford County, NC and adjacent Forsyth and
Rockingham Counties conducting a survey of milkweed species. We also
recorded roadside butterflies, including several stops where species were
puddling or massed at nectar sources.
 
Although we found several good plants, the butterfly star of the day was
Little Yellow, Pyrisitia (Eurema) lisa. We saw a total of 12, a remarkable
number for this area. Several were ovipositing on what appeared to be
Sensitive Pea (Chamaecrista sp). At least two were the pale form. I managed
to get a poor photograph of one ovipositing.

I have seen large numbers of this species in the Midlands of South Carolina,
but never in the upper Piedmont of North Carolina. I think that this 5 to 10
square mile area near Stokesdale, NC may be a previously unknown population
center for the species. I have seen a few here for the last two years, but
our intensive survey yesterday turned up as many as 4 at a time.
 
Common Buckeyes continue to be abundant in the tall grasses along roadsides
and in nearby pastures where they essentially are uncountable. Sleepy
Oranges also continue to be abundant, especially where there is a good
supply of Partridge Pea. We saw a remarkable number of Eastern Tailed-Blues,
at least 59, almost all of which were on damp areas along the roadside
edges. We had a total of 77 Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, still an unusually
high number but less than the peak in late July and early August. I think
that there was a recent emergence of Great Spangled Fritillaries. After
seeing very few for weeks, we saw a total of 9 in several places, all of
which were very fresh.
 
Yesterday was the first time that I have seen Wooly Worm caterpillars
(Isabella Tiger Moth caterpillar, Pyrrharctia isabella) crossing the road
this season. We saw two in two different places, and both were the blond
form. I don¹t know what that foretells for the coming winter weather!
 
The sequence of numbers represent sightings in Guilford, Forsyth, and
Rockingham Counties in the following species list.
 
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 34, 26, 17
Cabbage White 12, 0, 2
Cloudless Sulphur 25, 14, 6
Sleepy Orange 40+, 6, 9
Little Yellow 11, 1, 0
Eastern Tailed-Blue 27, 32, 0
Summer Azure 1, 0, 0
Variegated Fritillary 12, 0, 4
Great Spangled Fritillary 2, 7, 0
Pearl Crescent 13, 5, 0
Anglewing (Polygonia) sp 0, 1, 0
Red Admiral 0, 2, 0
Common Buckeye 50+, 3, 2
Red-spotted Purple 2, 6, 1
Viceroy 4, 2, 0
Carolina Satyr 0. 0, 1
Monarch 1, 2, 0
Sachem 6, 0, 0
 
Dennis
-- 
Dennis E. Burnette
Greensboro, NC 27410
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/

Subject: pupa pest
From: Van Burnette <growingmilkweed AT yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:56:51 -0700 (PDT)
I recently made a video of a monarch cat changing to a pupa.  While looking at 
it I noticed what appears to be a small wasp?  attaching itself to a pupa 
behind 

the changing cat.  If you have a chance look at the vid. at 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFA-C3HbonE 
If it is some kind of wasp, I am imagining it laying an egg in the pupa.  I 
also 

see others in the background.  Is there anything I can do to prevent this?  I 
am 

afraid that I also have OE infestation. 

I am keeping the cats in a 3 ft. screen cylinder 3 ft. tall. with a shade cloth 

on top.
Thanks for any help
 
Van Burnette
Hop'n Blueberry Farm
24 Middle Mountain Rd.
Black Mountain, NC 28711
www.hopnblueberryfarm.com
http://hopnblueberryfarm.blogspot.com/

________________________________



      
Subject: Croatan National Forest butterfly count aborted
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:50:33 -0400
Folks:

The drought in coastal NC was just too much to deal with, and it was obvious 
from the Southport count the day before, and from dusty dirt roads with no 
water in the ditches in Croatan, that a meaningful count at Croatan was not 
going to happen. I simply didn't want to take anyone's money yesterday (Aug. 
29) -- so, several of us just tried to find goodies by working together for a 
few hours. 


We failed again to find Arogos Skipper, and it might now be gone from NC. The 
huge burn in Croatan in July 2009 was highly untimely, and might have burned up 
the population. I had John Fussell show several of us a few neat places, 
including some botanical sites. For the record, John Fussell, Jack Fennell, Bud 
Webster, Dennis Forsythe (part of the morning), and I saw the following 
(Carteret, then Craven): 


E. Tiger Swallowtail  3, -
Spicebush Swallowtail  -, 1
Palamedes Swallowtail  30, 10
Cloudless Sulphur  100, 25
Sleepy Orange  5, -
Gray Hairstreak -, 1
Red-banded Hairstreak  25, -
Summer Azure  5, -
LITTLE METALMARK  2, -
Variegated Fritillary  1, -
Pearl Crescent  2, -
Red Admiral  1, 1
Common Buckeye  20, 3
Carolina Satyr  8, 3
Georgia Satyr  20, -
Common Wood-Nymph  5, -
Monarch  2, -
COMMON CHECKERED-SKIPPER  1, -  weird along a Croatan road thru a swamp
Clouded Skipper  4, -
Least Skipper -, 1
Tawny-edged Skipper  2, -
Byssus Skipper  13, -    one of the few numerous skippers
DUKES' SKIPPER  -, 30   One of John's spots north of Havelock
Lace-winged Roadside-Skipper  -, 1

We couldn't even find a Carolina Roadside-Skipper for Dennis, though we didn't 
go to the best spots. Still, we should have seen about 5 of them. Skippers were 
just awful. 


We'll try again next year, and hope for more summer rain. I hope to try a 
Pender County count about two weeks after the Croatan count next year. 



Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 
Subject: Pitt County, August 30
From: "Abdulali, Salman" <ABDULALIS AT ecu.edu>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:06:04 -0400
I visited the Pitt County Arboretum late today (6-6:40 pm, 2010-08-30) and saw 
a few butterflies: 


Black Swallowtail, 1
Palamedes Swallowtail, 1
Cloudless Sulphur, 1
Red-banded Hairstreak, 2 on onion chives
Summer Azure, 2
Monarch, 1
Pearl Crescent, 1
PAINTED LADY, 1 worn, first of year for Pitt
Common Buckeye, abundant
Silver-spotted Skipper, several, fairly fresh
Fiery Skipper, several
Ocola Skipper, 1

Salman Abdulali
Greenville, NC
Subject: Buncombe County
From: "Gail Lankford" <whocooksforyou AT skyrunner.net>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:31:07 -0400
Today while Doug was seeing  Giant ST in his yard, I got 2 new cove species 
on walk to mailbox.

Diana Frit - new
Tawny-edged- new
5 Red-banded HS (they are month late)
1 White M HS
1 Gray HS
3 Monarch
Wild Indigo DW
Tawny Emperor
5 No. Pearly-eye
15 other species for 24 total

Saturday had fresh American Lady, 5 Gray HS, 1 Red-banded HS, Tawny Emp, and 
No. Broken Dash, plus others.

Gail Lankford
Weaverville







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Subject: Plantersville area including Samworth WMA
From: "Jack" <jp5810 AT sccoast.net>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 16:05:12 -0500
Hi Carolina butterfly watchers,
Yesterday, Sunday, Aug. 29. I did some birding and looked for 
butterflies in the Plantersville area of Georgetown County, SC.
Here is what I found including a somewhat out of range individual (I 
think)

Spicebush Swallowtail-1
Palamedes Swallowtail-3
Cloudless Sulphur-25+
Red Admiral-1 very fresh
APPALACHIAN BROWN-1 I was on the nature trail and the butterfly landed 
on a branch for about a minute between the trail and a ditch.  I 
attempted to get close enough for a photo
but as I did so I spooked the butterfly and it went across the ditch 
into a Dove field.  It was a fairly dry area although a wet area is 
about 150 yards down the trail.
Carolina Satyr-1

I well be going back again tomorrow so I'll look for it again.

Jack Peachey
Conway, SC 
Subject: Re: Results from the Southport, NC, count, August 28
From: "Abdulali, Salman" <ABDULALIS AT ecu.edu>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:39:10 -0400
Here are photos of two highlights from the count. First, the Delaware Skipper:

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/DelawareA.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/DelawareB.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/DelawareC.jpg

Next, the Palatka Skipper:

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/PalatkaA.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/PalatkaB.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/PalatkaC.jpg

The Palatka shows some pale marks on the underside; these are not visible in 
most photos in the field guides I consulted. However, they are identical to the 
Palatka at the bottom of the following page on Butterflies of America: 


http://butterfliesofamerica.com/euphyes_p_pilatka_specimens.htm

Salman Abdulali
Greenville, NC

From: "Legrand, Harry" 
Date: August 30, 2010 9:24:16 AM EDT
To: "carolinaleps AT duke.edu" 
Subject: Results from the Southport, NC, count, August 28

Folks:

Don't be misled by the final species total -- 42. Last year, 4 people in 3 
parties got 44 species. This year, TWELVE people in FOUR parties, including 
Bald Head Island for the first (and possibly last) time, struggled mightily, 
and every party gave up an hour or two early, despite a beautiful weather day. 
What went wrong -- the drought of the summer, and perhaps the extended heat as 
well. Despite 4-6 inches of rain within the last week, that wasn't enough. 
Hardly any migrants other than Cloudless Sulphur were present, smaller skippers 
were hard to find, etc. Maybe this count would be better in mid-September. But, 
it might not be repeated in 2011. There are other coastal areas I am interested 
in (e.g., Holly Shelter Game Land), though someone else could try organizing 
this count. 


Here is what we (John Ennis, Taylor Piephoff, Ron Clark, Ed Corey, John 
Taggart, Salman Abdulali, Carl Ganser, Bud Webster, Randy Emmitt, Roger 
Rittmaster, Will Cook, and I) managed to find (with a few goodies): 


Black Swallowtail  4
GIANT SWALLOWTAIL 1  Fort Fisher area; surprisingly none at Bald Head
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail  1    yes, only one
Spicebush Swallowtail  11
Palamedes Swallowtail  137
Cloudless Sulphur  779
Sleepy Orange  40      somehow, Little Yellow missed
JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK  5   three parties
Gray Hairstreak  7
Red-banded Hairstreak  1
Gulf Fritillary  183     not a migrant; resident
Variegated Fritillary  40
Phaon Crescent  58    as expected, all at Ft. Fisher area
Pearl Crescent  4     awful!
Question Mark  1
American Lady   1    bad summer for them
PAINTED LADY  3   Bald Head Island
Red Admiral  2
Common Buckeye  32  pitiful
Red-spotted Purple  1
Viceroy  2
Southern Pearly-eye  1   Carolina Beach SP, I believe
Carolina Satyr  3
Monarch  57
QUEEN  32   one at BHI, and a staggering 31 at Fort Fisher!  Record state count
Silver-spotted Skipper  30    (but nary a Long-tailed Skipper)
Horace's Duskywing  42
Zarucco Duskywing  12   respectable total
Common Checkered-Skipper  4
Clouded Skipper  4   awful
Southern Skipperling  2  poor    (and, we missed Least Skipper)
Fiery Skipper  92
Whirlabout  13
Southern Broken-Dash  4
Delaware Skipper  7   Remarkable count; 6 on lantana in Southport!!
Broad-winged Skipper  2  lantana in Southport
PALATKA SKIPPER  1  new to count; lantana in Southport!!
Dion Skipper  1
Dun Skipper  7
Eufala Skipper  3
Salt Marsh Skipper  178
Ocola Skipper  2    woeful

Total = 42 species

Thanks to all who came down to help, as only one person -- John Ennis -- lives 
in the Wilmington/Southport area. Sorry I had to take $3 from each of you for 
the count fee, and maybe the Wild Turkey damage to Salman's car won't prevent 
him from doing other counts! 


Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)



Subject: Leonard's Skipper in Watauga Co., NC
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:27:10 -0400
I think the first report of Leonard's Skipper for the year -- and hopefully not 
the last(!) -- was one beautifully photographed by Curtis Smalling on August 22 
at Elk Knob State Park in Watauga County. Congrats -- probably a first record 
for the park. Of course the single flight of this species starts EARLIER in the 
mountains than downstate, so it usually is after Sept. 20 when they appear in 
the Triangle area. And, you practically have to make a special effort for them 
downstate. They don't appear in gardens, parks, etc., and they only nectar on 
pink, purple, or blue flowers "out in the country". Curtis's was nectaring on a 
pink thistle. 


Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)


Subject: RE: Yehl Skipper in North Raleigh!!
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 12:59:45 -0400
Nice photos. Yep - a fresh female Yehl. Seems a tad early for a female, as 
males should barely be coming out now. Numbers of these peak in mid-September 
in the Coastal Plain. It is a rare species in Wake, where I have seen it a few 
times, even at the Raulston Arboretum! There is a population in s.e. Chatham. 
As I have mentioned in the Approximation, nearly all of the Piedmont records 
are for the fall - second brood! This is not a migratory species, so perhaps 
there is no "first brood" in June, or at least is very tiny. Well into the 
Coastal Plain, there is a strong first brood in June. 


One of those NC/SC mysteries waiting to be solved by someone!

Harry LeGrand

P.S. Note that Matt's top side photo matches the female photo in the 
Brock/Kaufman book (page 333, center photo), but not the Glassberg book (Plate 
65, photo 6). I mentioned a few years ago that I considered that photo might be 
a Broad-winged -- notice how similar it is to Photo 3 . Jeff Glassberg 
responded that it was indeed a female Yehl - maybe because he has other photos 
of Yehl from Great Dismal Swamp NWR around the same time frame. All this proves 
is - identifying grass skippers from dorsal side photos is very tricky and can 
often not be 100%! Thank goodness Matt has good ventral photos, clearly a Yehl. 



Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)




From: Matthew Daw [mailto:birdboymatt AT yahoo.com]
Sent: Monday, August 30, 2010 11:36 AM
To: Carolinaleps; brian bockhahn; Ali Iyoob
Subject: Yehl Skipper in North Raleigh!!

Hi all,
 Just walked out my backyard to check on my butterfly bush, and there was a 
fresh Yehl Skipper!!! This is a first Falls Lake record (i live right very 
close to Falls Dam), and perhaps a first North Wake County Record. I have great 
pics attached on my flickr, i think its a female. I was so excited that I could 
hardly take a picture!! I will definitely be checking on the butterfly bush 
more often now!! Also on the bush were ET Swallowtail, Common Buckeye, Sleepy 
Orange, Sachem, Fiery Skipper, and, last night for another yard first, Common 
Checkered-Skipper. Also, sorry Brian for getting a new species 2 days after you 
updated the checklist!! # 93 btw, so 7 more to 100. 


Matthew Daw
Raleigh, NC

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36582974 AT N03/
Subject: Yehl Skipper in North Raleigh!!
From: Matthew Daw <birdboymatt AT yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:35:58 -0700 (PDT)
Hi all,
   Just walked out my backyard to check on my butterfly bush, and there was a 
fresh Yehl Skipper!!! This is a first Falls Lake record (i live right very 
close 

to Falls Dam), and perhaps a first North Wake County Record. I have great pics 
attached on my flickr, i think its a female. I was so excited that I could 
hardly take a picture!! I will definitely be checking on the butterfly bush 
more 

often now!! Also on the bush were ET Swallowtail, Common Buckeye, Sleepy 
Orange, 

Sachem, Fiery Skipper, and, last night for another yard first, Common 
Checkered-Skipper. Also, sorry Brian for getting a new species 2 days after you 

updated the checklist!! # 93 btw, so 7 more to 100.

Matthew Daw
Raleigh, NC

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36582974 AT N03/


      
Subject: Giant swallowtail in Leicester Patch
From: "Doug Johnston" <wellsteadwest AT gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:39:37 -0400
I just had a Giant swallowtail fly past my face while I was drinking a coffee 
by the house. I was waiting for a showing of warblers, but this made up for the 
lack of birds. 

Leicester Patch (no relation to Max patch), is another name for my local 
birding/butterflying/odontonating area in North Buncombe county, NC. The area 
is basically a hilly subdivision of houses with large lots, but also includes a 
hay field, mixed woods and a portion of Turkey Creek. 


Doug Johnston
Subject: Results from the Southport, NC, count, August 28
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 09:24:16 -0400
Folks:

Don't be misled by the final species total -- 42. Last year, 4 people in 3 
parties got 44 species. This year, TWELVE people in FOUR parties, including 
Bald Head Island for the first (and possibly last) time, struggled mightily, 
and every party gave up an hour or two early, despite a beautiful weather day. 
What went wrong -- the drought of the summer, and perhaps the extended heat as 
well. Despite 4-6 inches of rain within the last week, that wasn't enough. 
Hardly any migrants other than Cloudless Sulphur were present, smaller skippers 
were hard to find, etc. Maybe this count would be better in mid-September. But, 
it might not be repeated in 2011. There are other coastal areas I am interested 
in (e.g., Holly Shelter Game Land), though someone else could try organizing 
this count. 


Here is what we (John Ennis, Taylor Piephoff, Ron Clark, Ed Corey, John 
Taggart, Salman Abdulali, Carl Ganser, Bud Webster, Randy Emmitt, Roger 
Rittmaster, Will Cook, and I) managed to find (with a few goodies): 


Black Swallowtail  4
GIANT SWALLOWTAIL 1  Fort Fisher area; surprisingly none at Bald Head
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail  1    yes, only one
Spicebush Swallowtail  11
Palamedes Swallowtail  137
Cloudless Sulphur  779
Sleepy Orange  40      somehow, Little Yellow missed
JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK  5   three parties
Gray Hairstreak  7
Red-banded Hairstreak  1
Gulf Fritillary  183     not a migrant; resident
Variegated Fritillary  40
Phaon Crescent  58    as expected, all at Ft. Fisher area
Pearl Crescent  4     awful!
Question Mark  1
American Lady   1    bad summer for them
PAINTED LADY  3   Bald Head Island
Red Admiral  2
Common Buckeye  32  pitiful
Red-spotted Purple  1
Viceroy  2
Southern Pearly-eye  1   Carolina Beach SP, I believe
Carolina Satyr  3
Monarch  57
QUEEN  32   one at BHI, and a staggering 31 at Fort Fisher!  Record state count
Silver-spotted Skipper  30    (but nary a Long-tailed Skipper)
Horace's Duskywing  42
Zarucco Duskywing  12   respectable total
Common Checkered-Skipper  4
Clouded Skipper  4   awful
Southern Skipperling  2  poor    (and, we missed Least Skipper)
Fiery Skipper  92
Whirlabout  13
Southern Broken-Dash  4
Delaware Skipper  7   Remarkable count; 6 on lantana in Southport!!
Broad-winged Skipper  2  lantana in Southport
PALATKA SKIPPER  1  new to count; lantana in Southport!!
Dion Skipper  1
Dun Skipper  7
Eufala Skipper  3
Salt Marsh Skipper  178
Ocola Skipper  2    woeful

Total = 42 species

Thanks to all who came down to help, as only one person -- John Ennis -- lives 
in the Wilmington/Southport area. Sorry I had to take $3 from each of you for 
the count fee, and maybe the Wild Turkey damage to Salman's car won't prevent 
him from doing other counts! 


Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)


Subject: Re: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 23:48:34 -0400
Yes, my intent was to type Common Checkered-SKIPPER rather than Common
Checkered-White. Wishful thinking on my part, perhaps? I did list it with
the skippers, of course. "Zarucco" and "crossline" were called out during
the count down. They were plausible so I recorded them. As noted, the Little
Yellow was photographed by the observer. Dennis


on 8/29/10 10:56 PM, Legrand, Harry at harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov wrote:

> I had a conflict yesterday -- leading the Southport count. As I butterfly at
> Raulston about every two weeks, I would make a comment on several species on
> Dennis' list.
> 
> Zarucco Duskywing is rare-ish at Raulston, though I've seen a couple in 10
> years. There is a colony of Wild Indigo DW there, and I see the species there
> on maybe 50-60% of the trips I make from July - Sept. Thus, I would suspect
> the "Zarucco", without Wild Indigo reported, was likely a Wild Indigo, though
> I wouldn't rule out Zarucco. But, I'm not going to add Zarucco to the
> database.
> 
> Crossline Skipper is reasonably common in powerline clearings and other 
grassy 

> places OUTSIDE Raleigh, at this time of year. I cannot remember if I've ever
> seen one at Raulston.  So, I'll likely not enter this one either, but it
> certainly could be correct.
> 
> "Common Checkered-White" I'm sure was meant to be Common Checkered-Skipper,
> which is fairly common at the arboretum. I have seen a few Checkered Whites
> over the years, but they are nearly gone from Wake County now, so ..
> 
> I can't remember also if I've ever seen a Little Yellow at the arboretum. 
But, 

> they are showing up now in Wake County, so I'll enter this.
> 
> A nice list of species, more than my usual 20 at this time of year -- perhaps
> owing to very thorough coverage. Good to see Painted Lady is starting to show
> up across NC now.
> 
> Harry LeGrand
> NC Natural Heritage Program
> DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
> 1601 MSC
> Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
> (919) 715-8697 (work)
> e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
> 
> -----------------------------------------------------
> Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the
> North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third
> parties.
> ________________________________________
> From: Dennis Burnette [deburnette AT triad.rr.com]
> Sent: Sunday, August 29, 2010 4:44 PM
> To: Carolinaleps; CBS - Triad Chapter
> Subject: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10
> 
> Butterflies at Raulston Arboretum, Raleigh, NC
> Carolina Butterfly Society Butterfly Symposium
> August 28, 2010
> 
> The Carolina Butterfly Society sponsored held annual Butterfly Symposium on
> Saturday, August 28, 2010, at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, Wake
> Co., NC. Nearly 40 people spent the day enjoying and learning about
> butterflies, moth and butterfly caterpillars, and host plants. Many thanks
> to Cyndy Hummel for organizing this great event this year.
> 
> From 12:30 until around 2:00 pm, we toured the grounds under the guidance of
> arboretum volunteers. Symposium attendees were divided into two smaller
> groups, and several participants chose to explore the arboretum on their
> own. The weather was mostly sunny, about 90 degrees, with a light breeze.
> 
> Shortly after we returned to the meeting room, we had a ³count down² to make
> a cumulative record of the butterfly species seen by the groups and
> individual participants. Although it was impossible to get accurate numbers
> of individual butterflies, the following is a list of the 29 species
> reported during the symposium:
> 
> Pipevine Swallowtail
> Black Swallowtail
> Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
> Spicebush Swallowtail
> Cabbage White
> Cloudless Sulphur
> Little Yellow (photographed)
> Sleepy Orange
> Gray Hairstreak
> Red-banded Hairstreak
> Eastern Tailed-Blue
> Summer Azure
> American Snout
> Variegated Fritillary
> Pearl Crescent
> American Lady
> Painted Lady (both ladies scarce this year)
> Common Buckeye (abundant)
> Monarch
> Silver-spotted Skipper
> Horace¹s Duskywing
> Zarucco Duskywing (reported by one participant)
> Common Checkered-White
> Common Sootywing
> Clouded Skipper
> Fiery Skipper
> Sachem
> Crossline Skipper
> Southern Broken Dash.
> 
> Recorder: Dennis Burnette
> 
> 

Subject: RE: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 22:56:00 -0400
I had a conflict yesterday -- leading the Southport count. As I butterfly at 
Raulston about every two weeks, I would make a comment on several species on 
Dennis' list. 


Zarucco Duskywing is rare-ish at Raulston, though I've seen a couple in 10 
years. There is a colony of Wild Indigo DW there, and I see the species there 
on maybe 50-60% of the trips I make from July - Sept. Thus, I would suspect the 
"Zarucco", without Wild Indigo reported, was likely a Wild Indigo, though I 
wouldn't rule out Zarucco. But, I'm not going to add Zarucco to the database. 


Crossline Skipper is reasonably common in powerline clearings and other grassy 
places OUTSIDE Raleigh, at this time of year. I cannot remember if I've ever 
seen one at Raulston. So, I'll likely not enter this one either, but it 
certainly could be correct. 


"Common Checkered-White" I'm sure was meant to be Common Checkered-Skipper, 
which is fairly common at the arboretum. I have seen a few Checkered Whites 
over the years, but they are nearly gone from Wake County now, so .. 


I can't remember also if I've ever seen a Little Yellow at the arboretum. But, 
they are showing up now in Wake County, so I'll enter this. 


A nice list of species, more than my usual 20 at this time of year -- perhaps 
owing to very thorough coverage. Good to see Painted Lady is starting to show 
up across NC now. 


Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 

________________________________________
From: Dennis Burnette [deburnette AT triad.rr.com]
Sent: Sunday, August 29, 2010 4:44 PM
To: Carolinaleps; CBS - Triad Chapter
Subject: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10

Butterflies at Raulston Arboretum, Raleigh, NC
Carolina Butterfly Society Butterfly Symposium
August 28, 2010

The Carolina Butterfly Society sponsored held annual Butterfly Symposium on
Saturday, August 28, 2010, at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, Wake
Co., NC. Nearly 40 people spent the day enjoying and learning about
butterflies, moth and butterfly caterpillars, and host plants. Many thanks
to Cyndy Hummel for organizing this great event this year.

From 12:30 until around 2:00 pm, we toured the grounds under the guidance of
arboretum volunteers. Symposium attendees were divided into two smaller
groups, and several participants chose to explore the arboretum on their
own. The weather was mostly sunny, about 90 degrees, with a light breeze.

Shortly after we returned to the meeting room, we had a ³count down² to make
a cumulative record of the butterfly species seen by the groups and
individual participants. Although it was impossible to get accurate numbers
of individual butterflies, the following is a list of the 29 species
reported during the symposium:

Pipevine Swallowtail
Black Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Spicebush Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Cloudless Sulphur
Little Yellow (photographed)
Sleepy Orange
Gray Hairstreak
Red-banded Hairstreak
Eastern Tailed-Blue
Summer Azure
American Snout
Variegated Fritillary
Pearl Crescent
American Lady
Painted Lady (both ladies scarce this year)
Common Buckeye (abundant)
Monarch
Silver-spotted Skipper
Horace¹s Duskywing
Zarucco Duskywing (reported by one participant)
Common Checkered-White
Common Sootywing
Clouded Skipper
Fiery Skipper
Sachem
Crossline Skipper
Southern Broken Dash.

Recorder: Dennis Burnette

Subject: Early report from Fort Fisher section of the Butterfly Count
From: <ed.corey AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:18:18 -0400 (EDT)
Just a heads-up that right now is a great time for Queens.  John Taggart and I
had 31 Queens yesterday below Snow's Cut, at Carolina Beach State Park and Fort
Fisher State Recreation Area.  The greatest concentrations seemed to occur
along the Basin Trail, near the old Hermit Bunker, at FOFI.  Lots of Sand-vine
(Cynanchum)along this trail, with most of the individuals seen being very dark,
possibly indicating a recent brood.

Other highlights included:

199 Cloudless Sulphurs
14 Monarchs
126 SALTMARSH SKIPPERS
10 Common Buckeye
58 PHAON CRESCENTS
1 Common Checkered-Skipper
12 Palamedes Swallowtails
6 Gulf Fritillaries
1 JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK (second ever for me)
2 Horace's Duskywings
1 Gray Hairstreak
1 GIANT SWALLOWTAIL
1 Black Swallowtail
1 Whirlabout
3 Carolina Satyrs
1 Southern Pearly-Eye
2 Fiery Skippers

Then today, on the way back up by way of Sandy Run State Park, I saw the
following:

Pender - 
Cloudless Sulphurs - 289
Palamedes Swallowtails - 15
Sleepy Orange - 1
Orange Sulphur - 18
Red-spotted Purple - 1
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail - 2

Onslow - 
Cloudless Sulphurs - 100 (38 in the park)
Palamedes Swallowtails - 15 (13 in the park)
Sleepy Orange - 1
Monarch - 1
Common Buckeye - 4
Pearl Crescent - 1
American Lady - 1

Total Cloudless for 2 days - 588 (plus others in other counties not counted)

Other highlights included a Striped Mud Turtle in Pender County, a rail flying
over the marsh at Fort Fisher, GOBS of Seaside Dragonlets and Black Saddlebags,
black terns, and a young Eastern Box Turtle at the Ferry Terminal.

Ed Corey
Raleigh, NC
Subject: Butterflies 8/29/10 Greensboro, NC Arboretum
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 17:54:19 -0400
8/29/10 Greensboro Arboretum Butterflies
 
Four of us, Dave Kastner, Marty Kastner, Lynn Burnette, and I, spent about
an hour and a half in the Greensboro Arboretum (Guilford Co., NC) this
morning from around 10:15 to 11:45. The weather was mostly sunny, 85
degrees, little breeze, and humid. The Sedum 'Autumn Joy' is just beginning
to bloom and is attracting a lot of activity. Lantana also is bring in a lot
of butterflies.

We saw the following butterflies:
 
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 12
Cabbage White 3
Cloudless Sulphur 1
Sleepy Orange 3
Eastern Tailed-Blue 1
Common Buckeye 16+
Monarch 6
Horace¹s Duskywing 10+
Silver-spotted Skipper 3
Common Sootywing 1
Fiery Skipper 20+
Northern Broken-Dash 2
Southern Broken-Dash 1
Sachem 20+
 
Dennis
-- 
Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/

 

Subject: Landsford Canal Butterflies
From: "Lynn B. Smith" <smithlynnb AT bellsouth.net>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 17:20:01 -0400
HI all,
I didn't get to walk much of the trail at Landsford Canal State Park  
in Chester Co.,  but here is my short list from mostly the picnic  
area.  In order of appearance.

August 28 (Saturday), 2010

Cloudless Sulphur
Red-spotted Purple
Variegated Fritillary
E. Tiger Swallowtail
Carolina Satyr
Sleepy Orange
Spread-wing Skipper - Erynnis sp.
Hackberry Emperor – Asterocampa celtis

Lynn Smith
Camden, SC



  
Subject: Butterflies at CBS Butterfly Symposium 8/28/10
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 16:44:30 -0400
Butterflies at Raulston Arboretum, Raleigh, NC
Carolina Butterfly Society Butterfly Symposium
August 28, 2010
 
The Carolina Butterfly Society sponsored held annual Butterfly Symposium on
Saturday, August 28, 2010, at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, Wake
Co., NC. Nearly 40 people spent the day enjoying and learning about
butterflies, moth and butterfly caterpillars, and host plants. Many thanks
to Cyndy Hummel for organizing this great event this year.
 
From 12:30 until around 2:00 pm, we toured the grounds under the guidance of
arboretum volunteers. Symposium attendees were divided into two smaller
groups, and several participants chose to explore the arboretum on their
own. The weather was mostly sunny, about 90 degrees, with a light breeze.
 
Shortly after we returned to the meeting room, we had a ³count down² to make
a cumulative record of the butterfly species seen by the groups and
individual participants. Although it was impossible to get accurate numbers
of individual butterflies, the following is a list of the 29 species
reported during the symposium:
 
Pipevine Swallowtail
Black Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Spicebush Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Cloudless Sulphur
Little Yellow (photographed)
Sleepy Orange
Gray Hairstreak
Red-banded Hairstreak
Eastern Tailed-Blue
Summer Azure
American Snout
Variegated Fritillary
Pearl Crescent
American Lady
Painted Lady (both ladies scarce this year)
Common Buckeye (abundant)
Monarch
Silver-spotted Skipper
Horace¹s Duskywing
Zarucco Duskywing (reported by one participant)
Common Checkered-White
Common Sootywing
Clouded Skipper
Fiery Skipper
Sachem
Crossline Skipper
Southern Broken Dash.
 
Recorder: Dennis Burnette

Subject: Carolina Butterfly Society Symposium: Photos
From: dorothypugh AT aol.com
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 13:54:58 -0400 (EDT)
 Karl Gottschalk and I had a great time at this meeting and learned so much: 
now I know what a hibernaculum is, how to recognize Monarch Caterpillar instars 
and much better how to find my way around Falls Lake State Park! The setting 
was just as educational, and the help others provided getting good sightings 
made for a wonderful day. 


I got photos of lots of wonderful leps: 
http://www.dpughphoto.com/critters_august_2010 


Dorothy Pugh
Durham, NC

 

Subject: 7 Tiger swallowtail caterpillars/symposium
From: "Loretta" <butterflies_bg AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 10:30:11 -0400
First and foremost, I would like to commend Cyndy, editor of The Chrysalis, for 
organizing the Carolina Butterfly Symposium, 8-28-2010. The programs presented 
by all speakers, were excellent, and very informative. Several unanswered 
mysteries I had were addressed, and answered in the presentations. I can't 
speak for the other guided tours of the arboretum, but Denny, our guide was 
outstanding. Well done, Cyndy!! Thank you! 


Now, butterfly stuff........just came inside from placing a label on my dwarf 
hackberry, and thought I'd check on my nearby Ptelea trifoliata, hops 
tree/wafer ash, to see if it was surviving the drought. It is placed at the 
edge of the woodland, where it gets all underground rainwater from the gutters. 
OMGosh!!! Seven (7!) tiger swallowtails!!! and the foliage area is only 24 x 
48". 


Ptelea is not listed as a host plant in The Butterflies of North America, by 
James Scott, unless in my excitement, I passed over it. There are 3 third 
instar, 1 fourth instar, and 3 fifth instar caterpillars. 


The 3 fifth instars have made a bit of a shelter of the leaves, something I've 
not seen before on magnolia virginiana, perhaps because the leaves on hops tree 
are much softer and more pliable. OR, when they create the elevated pad, upon 
which they come back to rest after feeding, the pliability of the leaves acts 
much like lindera benzoin, or sassafras, creating the fold as the webbing 
dries. 


How will I ever get all my housework done when there are such exciting 
discoveries outside!?!? 


Happy butterflying to all!!

Loretta 
Asheboro, NC
Subject: New butterfly house
From: Van Burnette <growingmilkweed AT yahoo.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 06:45:05 -0700 (PDT)
Just to let everyone know, I am new to the list serve and would like make an 
announcement about our new butterfly flight house located near Black Mountain, 
NC. at the Hop'n Blueberry Farm.  We are specializing in Monarch butterflies 
and 

have all stages of metamorphosis going on presently.  We are giving tours to 
the 

general public and to public and private schools.
Currently we have pipevine and tiger swallowtails, sulfurs, and buckeyes in the 

house as well as monarchs. The house has host and nectar plants, a caterpillar 
house, hanging chrysalis trees, and a waterfall with an insectivorous  (not 
butterflies!) moss garden.  The walk to the house has a 175 ft. long nectar 
garden.
Working closely with Dr.Winthrop Phippen at the University of Western Illinois 
has proven successeful with 1/8 acre of native milkweed in production.  We are 
looking at the feasibility of producing native milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) 
commercially not only for butterfly food but for a number of other applications 

from oil absorption to pillow and comforters.  Check out our farm on the 
website 

below.
We give tours on Fridays at 10am. and Saturdays at 10am. and 12 pm.  Picnic 
tables in the shade are available.  Price is $5/person.  Groups rates available 

and any special event from birthdays to weddings can be accommodated.
Please call us first at 828-664-1166. 

Van Burnette
Hop'n Blueberry Farm
24 Middle Mountain Rd.
Black Mountain, NC 28711
www.hopnblueberryfarm.com
http://hopnblueberryfarm.blogspot.com/

________________________________



      
Subject: RE: Mecklenburg County butterfly bonanza
From: TNT Sanders <tsanders1993 AT msn.com>
Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 09:19:44 -0400
We decided to check out this area yesterday, 8/28/10. Being a Saturday it was 
quite crowded with model airplane enthusiasts, a bit noisy, but interesting to 
watch. 

The Dogbane and Milkweed are still in full bloom and the butterfly activity was 
as Alan said truly spectacular. 

We found the following 27 species in just over one hour, all on the Dogbane.
 
Zebra Swallowtail - 2
Black Swallowtail - 1
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail - 28
Clouded Sulphur - 1
Orange Sulphur - 2
Cloudless Sulphur - 6
Sleepy Orange - 3
JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK - 1
Gray Hairstreak - 1
Eastern Tailed-Blue - 55
Variegated Fritillary - 11
Great Spangled Fritillary - 1
Pearl Crescent - 5
Question Mark - 1
American Lady - 2
Red Admiral - 2
Common Buckeye - 60
Red-spotted Purple - 3
Viceroy - 8
Tawny Emperor - 1
Carolina Satyr - 2
Monarch - 18
Silver-spotted Skipper - 65
Horace's Duskywing - 1
Fiery Skipper - 9
Sachem - 40
Dun Skipper - 1
 
In addition, we had the following moths taking part in the bonanza:
 
Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis, #7855) - 3
Hummingbird Clearwing (Hemaris thysbe, #7853) - 1
Delicate Cycnia (Cycnia tenera, #8230) - 7
 
Tom and Tammy Sanders
Charlotte, NC

 



Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 19:13:45 -0400
Subject: Mecklenburg County butterfly bonanza 8/24
From: akneidel AT gmail.com
To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu

Hey folks,

Today, 8/24/10, I spent a full afternoon at a section of the David B. Waymer 
Flying Fields in Mecklenburg County. Having covered this area for the South 
Lake Norman Butterfly Count nine days beforehand, I was aware that there was a 
large, pure blooming expanse of Dogbane(Apocynum cannabium) and adjacent 
patches of Swamp Milkweed(Asclepias incarnata), the milkweed of which had yet 
bloom. I decided to return today.. 


The 7 x 50 meter expanse of flowers lies in a natural gas pipeline ROW that 
runs downhill through second growth into bottomland forest. The lower section 
of the pipeline is partially inundated with water dominated with carex sp., 
with a few scattered patches of blooming ironweed(Vernonia altisimma) along the 
border. At the base of the ROW there is a trail that enters the bottomland 
forest, where there are large stands of river cane(Arundinaria gigantea). 


Today I was able(with much patience) to locate 50 species within this section. 
With exception of the cane-specialists and woodland/swamp species, all others 
were at one point or another on the dogbane. It was truly a spectacle unlike 
any other I have seen! Here is the list: 


Zebra Swallowtail - 3
Black Swallowtail - 2
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail - 15
Spicebush Swallowtail - 1
Cabbage White - 3
Clouded Sulphur - 2
Cloudless Sulphur - 4
LITTLE YELLOW - 1
Sleepy Orange - 3
GREAT PURPLE HAIRSTREAK - 1
Red-banded Hairstreak - 1
JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK - 1
Gray Hairstreak - 2
Summer Azure - 1
Eastern Tailed-Blue - 30
American Snout - 1
Variegated Fritillary - 16
Pearl Crescent - 20
Question Mark - 1
PAINTED LADY - 1
American Lady - 3
Red Admiral - 2
Common Buckeye - 40
Red-spotted Purple - 3
Viceroy - 1
Hackberry Emperor - 1
NORTHERN PEARLY-EYE - 2
CREOLE PEARLY-EYE - 2
APPALACHIAN BROWN - 6
Gemmed Satyr - 2
Carolina Satyr - 60
Monarch - 14 adults - many cats
Silver-spotted Skipper - 50
Southern Cloudywing - 1
Horace's Duskywing - 1
Common Checkered-Skipper - 3
Common Sootywing - 1
Clouded Skipper - 4
Least Skipper - 30
Fiery Skipper - 40
TAWNY-EDGED SKIPPER - 1
Crossline Skipper - 2
Southern Broken-Dash - 1
Little Glassywing - 2
Sachem - 60
DELAWARE SKIPPER - 1
Zabulon Skipper - 4
Dun Skipper - 6
LACE-WINGED ROADSIDE-SKIPPER - 1
OCOLA SKIPPER - 8

Not sure if anyone want so to check the spot out... but just in case... the 
flying fields are located at the end of Holbrooks Road in Huntersville. You 
will see the flying fields on your left, and a landfill on the right. If you 
pull into the flying field parking lot, you will see a large covered gazebo and 
parking lot. The pipeline ROW is southeast of the gazebo, downhill, and 
accessible by walking down through the lespedeza. It also possible to access 
the ROW right at the entrance gate to the flying fields, the top of the ROW 
being just a few feet east of the gate. Exact coordinates of the patch: 
35°24'16.24"N, 80°48'50.70"W 

Cheers,
-- 
Alan H. Kneidel
980-254-2706
akneidel AT gmail.com
 		 	   		  
Subject: B'flies in N. Durham County
From: "Tom Krakauer" <tkrakauer AT mindspring.com>
Date: Sat, 28 Aug 2010 10:42:54 -0400
Lynn Richardson and I went out yesterday morning from about 9:30 to 12:15
and went to Hill Forest (first ½ mile), Quail Roost and my backyard.  

 

Quail Roost had mowed the large field since the Durham Count which had a
large impact on several species particularly the number of buckeyes—86
rather than 250.  Still we saw 31 species.  Tawny Emperor were more common
than I have experienced at Quail Roost.  They were defending territory—fun.
There were far more skippers, but many were very worn and beyond my
capability and patience.  

 

Pipevine ST                         4

Eastern Tiger ST                60

Spicebush ST                      3

Clouded Sulphur              1

Cloudless Sulphur            5

Orange Sulphur                35

Sleepy Orange                  12

Gray Hairstreak                 1

Eastern TB                           22

Summer Azure                  2

Variegated Fritillary         40

Great-spangled Frit         3

Pearl Crescent                   5

Question Mark                  1

Ea. Comma                         2

Red Admiral                       4

Common Buckeye           86

Red-spotted Purple        5

Hackberry Emperor         3

Tawny Emperor                11

Carolina Satyr                    1       

Monarch                              6

SSS                                         13

Common Checkered sk   8      

Least Skipper                     1

Fiery Skipper                      2

Southeen Broken Dash   5

Little Glassy-wing             3

Sachem                                10

Zabulon Skipper               1   down

Dun Skipper                       1

 

Nice day.

 

Tom

 

                

Thomas Krakauer

128 White Horse Run

Bahama, NC 27503

tkrakauer AT mindspring.com

 
Subject: Re: Reynolda Gardens Meadow Butterflies
From: Alex Netherton <danetherton AT charter.net>
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:04:42 -0400
I checked Radford (Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas, by 
Radford, Ahles and Bell), the USDA Plants site ( http://plants.usda.gov 
), and can find no Clematis ternifolia. Could it be C. terniflora?

I was terribly confused, as C. terniflora is not found under that name 
in Radford. It is under C. dioscoreifolia. I found it on the Plants 
site, and put a note in Radford. Radford is a great book, but is in some 
ways hopelessly behind the time, as it was printed in 1968! Since I took 
Local Flora (Taxonomy) at Lees McRae College in 1970, I have worn out 
about 4 of them... Hope they stay in print!

Alex Netherton
Asheville, NC
danetherton AT charter.net
http://blueridgediscovery.com



nottke1 wrote:
> Gene Schepker and I spent about 90 minutes late this morning mostly walking 
around the new meadow at Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University in 
Winston-Salem. While there were a few Rudbeckia and aster blossoms, the main 
butterfly attractant was Autumn Clematis (Clematis ternifolia). 

>
> 17 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
> 1  Orange Sulphur
> 3  Cloudless Sulphur
> 14 Sleepy Orange
> 3  Eastern Tailed Blue
> 1  Summer Azure
> 3  Pearl Crescent
> 54 Common Buckeye
> 1  Hackberry Emperor
> 1  Carolina Satyr
> 1  Monarch
> 7  Silver Spotted Skipper    and 3 caterpillars on locust
> 4  Crossline Skipper
> 21 Sachem
> 8  Zabulon Skipper
>
> Jim Nottke
>
>   
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com 
> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3097 - Release Date: 08/27/10 
02:34:00 

>
>   
Subject: Butterfly Symposium Detour
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 11:58:44 -0400
Butterfliers,

If you will be traveling to the Carolina Butterfly Society Butterfly
Symposium at the Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh tomorrow (Saturday, 8/28)
from WEST of Greensboro, you should be aware that the NC Department of
Transportation plans to close part of I-40 eastbound by 6:00 am. Travelers
from western Greensboro and High Point, Kernersville, Winston-Salem, and
other points west will need to make a detour around Greensboro.

The eastbound lanes of I-40 will be closed between Guilford College Road
(Exit 213) and Wendover Avenue this weekend until 6 a.m. Monday. NCDOT will
close the westbound lanes sometime in September as part of the same
construction project, by the way.

EASTBOUND I-40 DETOUR:

Eastbound I-40 traffic will take Exit 212 to southbound I-73. Watch for
signs directing you toward Asheboro and Raleigh. You will follow a loop
south of Greensboro to northbound I-85. Signs will direct you to I-85N,
I-40E, and Durham/Raleigh. I-85 eventually will join eastbound I-40, at
which point you will continue as normal to the Raulston Arboretum in
Raleigh.

Thanks to Anne Long for alerting us to this and to Lynn Burnette for finding
the detour information on line.

Dennis
-- 
Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/

Subject: Report, CBS Field Trip Botanical Garden, Clemson, SC 8/21
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 10:30:11 -0400
Report, CBS Butterfly Field Trip - SC Botanical Garden, Clemson, SC
Saturday, August 21, 2010
 
Despite the threat of rain, 19 people from North Carolina, South Carolina
and Canada participated in the Carolina Butterfly Society field trip to
Clemson, SC on Saturday, Aug. 21, 2010. The group was about equally split
between CBS members and members of the Friends of the Garden. We also
enjoyed the company of a family of three from Canada, including a delightful
7 year-old child who got very excited about butterflies.
 
The trip leaders, Carolyn and John Turner, had planned a full day of
butterflying for us. We spent the morning exploring the new butterfly garden
in the South Carolina Botanical Garden in Clemson, where we were joined by
staff member Lisa Wagner, who also is a long time member of CBS. This is the
garden that CBS helped fund with a grant last year.
 
John and Carolyn have been volunteers in the botanical garden for more that
10 years. They have spent many hours consulting with garden staff and
working to set up the butterfly garden. That hard work shows. They have
placed a big emphasis on host plants, and the result is that we found many
butterfly caterpillars of several species. Even though it was overcast and
eventually began to rain, we also saw quite a few adult butterflies visiting
the nectar plants in the butterfly garden and the adjacent children¹s
garden.
 
When the rain increased, we retreated to a nearby greenhouse. We got in a
little more butterflying after the rain tapered off, and then had lunch on
the covered back porch of the education building. Many of the participants
decided to call it a day at that point. The rest of us made a visit the
butterfly garden at Duke Power¹s World of Energy. We were rained out there,
so we went to our leaders¹ home where we waited out the rain on their back
porch.  As always happens, the rain finally ended, so we were able to find
several more species and caterpillars in their large (1-acre plus) butterfly
garden. We celebrated a good day by going out to dinner together that
evening. Many thanks to the Turners for an excellent field trip.
 
A few of us visited the botanical garden on Friday evening and also on
Sunday morning before departing. The trip list below reflects some species
seen then, as well as on the ³official² trip on Saturday.
 
Species list:
Pipevine Swallowtail (adults and caterpillars)
Black Swallowtail (caterpillars)
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Cloudless Sulphur (adults and caterpillars)
Sleepy Orange (adults and caterpillars)
Gulf Fritillary (adults and caterpillars)
Great Spangled Fritillary
Common Buckeye
Monarch (adults and caterpillars)
Silver-spotted Skipper
Horace¹s Duskywing
Common Checkered-Skipper
Fiery Skipper
Sachem
Pearl Crescent and Red Admiral were seen by Jim Eldrett outside the garden.
 
Participants: Linda Binic, Rob Bixler, Dennis Burnette, Lynn Burnette,
Denise Dupon, Jim Eldrett, Robert Jolly, Dixie Haywood, Lois Kaufman, Bob
Perdelwitz, Heidi Perdelwitz, Melinda Schweer, Susan Scott Soyars, Carolyn
Turner, John Turner, Lisa Wagner, and three guests from Canada.
 
Report submitted by

Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/

Subject: Hilton Pond 08/22/10 (Front Yards & Sourwoods)
From: Bill Hilton Jr. (RESEARCH) <research AT hiltonpond.org>
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 07:56:30 -0400
"This Week at Hilton Pond" we explore our small front yard at the Center, 
finding and photographing a diverse assemblage of flora and fauna from 
predatory insects to immature hummingbirds to unexpected orchids. For a photo 
essay about these organisms that could be hanging out in your own front yard, 
please see our installment for 22-26 August 2010 at 
http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek100822.html . We also pose a question about 
the importance of Sourwood trees as a hummingbird nectar source. 


This edition includes the exiting first announcement of how YOU--thanks to the 
amazing generosity of an alumnus from past Operation RubyThroat 
expeditions--can go with us for FREE next winter to Costa Rica. If you've 
always wanted to study hummingbirds in the warm, sunny Neotropics when winter 
weather is at its worst in North America, here's your big chance to receive one 
of TWO $1,799 trip scholarships while supporting Hilton Pond Center's 
education, research, and conservation endeavors. 


Don't forget to scroll down for a list of birds banded at Hilton Pond during 
the most recent period, as well as a couple of miscellaneous nature notes. 


Happy Nature Watching!

BILL

=========

RESEARCH PROGRAM
c/o BILL HILTON JR. Executive Director
Hilton Pond Center for Piedmont Natural History
1432 DeVinney Road, York, South Carolina 29745 USA
office & cell (803) 684-5852
fax (803) 684-0255

Please visit our web sites (courtesy of Comporium.net):
Hilton Pond Center for Piedmont Natural History at http://www.hiltonpond.org 
"Operation RubyThroat: The Hummingbird Project" at http://www.rubythroat.org

==================
Subject: Augusta-Aiken Audubon Wings and Things field trip
From: Lois Stacey <croakie AT comcast.net>
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 21:05:48 -0400
  Augusta-Aiken Audubon will hold another 'Wings and Things' field trip 
at the Silver Bluff Audubon Center near Jackson, SC on Saturday Sept. 
4.  We will meet at the Kathwood Ponds on Silver Bluff Rd at 8am.  
Laura's Clubtail and Southeastern Spinyleg have both been seen at the 
site in the past, we hope to find one of them this time as well.  We'll 
also look for butterflies, birds, reptiles and whatever else we can 
find.  The trip will end about noon.


We are also having a field trip to Yuchi WMA in Burke County, GA on Oct 
2.  We will meet at Phinizy Swamp NP in Augusta at 7 and carpool, or you 
can meet us at the boat ramp on Brigham Landing Road at 8.  This is 
primarily a bird watching trip, but we will spend a little time looking 
for Shining Clubtail, Stylurus ivae which was seen here last year.  
(Yuchi WMA is near Girard, GA.  From GA 23 in Girard you can turn onto 
Brigham Landing Road and drive to the river).


-- 
Lois Stacey
North Augusta, SC (Aiken Cnty)
www.augustaaikenaudubon.org
Find Augusta-Aiken Audubon on Facebook
Subject: Augusta-Aiken Audubon Wings and Things field trip
From: Lois Stacey <croakie AT comcast.net>
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 21:05:48 -0400
  Augusta-Aiken Audubon will hold another 'Wings and Things' field trip 
at the Silver Bluff Audubon Center near Jackson, SC on Saturday Sept. 
4.  We will meet at the Kathwood Ponds on Silver Bluff Rd at 8am.  
Laura's Clubtail and Southeastern Spinyleg have both been seen at the 
site in the past, we hope to find one of them this time as well.  We'll 
also look for butterflies, birds, reptiles and whatever else we can 
find.  The trip will end about noon.


We are also having a field trip to Yuchi WMA in Burke County, GA on Oct 
2.  We will meet at Phinizy Swamp NP in Augusta at 7 and carpool, or you 
can meet us at the boat ramp on Brigham Landing Road at 8.  This is 
primarily a bird watching trip, but we will spend a little time looking 
for Shining Clubtail, Stylurus ivae which was seen here last year.  
(Yuchi WMA is near Girard, GA.  From GA 23 in Girard you can turn onto 
Brigham Landing Road and drive to the river).


-- 
Lois Stacey
North Augusta, SC (Aiken Cnty)
www.augustaaikenaudubon.org
Find Augusta-Aiken Audubon on Facebook
Subject: Reynolda Gardens Meadow Butterflies
From: nottke1 <nottke1 AT earthlink.net>
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 21:01:02 -0400 (EDT)
Gene Schepker and I spent about 90 minutes late this morning mostly walking 
around the new meadow at Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University in 
Winston-Salem. While there were a few Rudbeckia and aster blossoms, the main 
butterfly attractant was Autumn Clematis (Clematis ternifolia). 


17 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
1  Orange Sulphur
3  Cloudless Sulphur
14 Sleepy Orange
3  Eastern Tailed Blue
1  Summer Azure
3  Pearl Crescent
54 Common Buckeye
1  Hackberry Emperor
1  Carolina Satyr
1  Monarch
7  Silver Spotted Skipper    and 3 caterpillars on locust
4  Crossline Skipper
21 Sachem
8  Zabulon Skipper

Jim Nottke

Subject: Some Caswell Co., NC, butterflies
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 20:57:15 -0400
Today (Aug. 26) was a perfect butterfly weather day in Caswell County, but my 
first 4.5 hours were inside the forest. Thankfully, I had some time to hit some 
bridge crossings and walk road margins looking for butterflies and rare plants. 
True butterflies were in good numbers, but most skippers are getting finished, 
apparently. Here's my list: 


E. Tiger Swallowtail 75 no drop in numbers here, apparently; covering 
Joe-pye-weed 

Spicebush Swallowtail  2
Orange Sulphur  2
Cloudless Sulphur  20   numbers way up from previous weeks; pouring northward!
Sleepy Orange  4
LITTLE YELLOW  2  my first anywhere in 2010
Gray Hairstreak  1
E. Tailed-Blue  2
Summer Azure  5
American Snout  1
Great Spangled Fritillary  3
Silvery Checkerspot  15   probably my best Caswell total ever
Pearl Crescent  12
Question Mark  1
Common Buckeye  3
Red-spotted Purple  2
Hackberry Emperor  1  fresh road-kill
Tawny Emperor  3   all landing on me
Carolina Satyr  8
Silver-spotted Skipper  5
Zabulon Skipper  4  males and females
Dun Skipper  1

Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 
Subject: nice count of Dukes' Skippers
From: "John Fussell" <jfuss AT clis.com>
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 08:29:28 -0400
On Wednesday I had a count of at least 200 Dukes' Skippers on a 
private tract near Havelock.  The ground cover of the site is strongly 
dominated by Carex hyalinolepis.

John Fussell
Morehead City, NC
jfuss AT clis.com


Subject: RE: Pitt County, August 25
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 20:11:19 -0400
Looks like to me all three photos are of female Duns. The first two are, and I 
had to pull out the books on the top side photo. Eufala has a different white 
spot pattern -- a semicircle, and the wings are typically more triangular. If 
you look at female Dun photos in the books, from above, what I see there looks 
like Salman's photo. But, clearly if the last is a Dun, it is a worn one! 
Eufala should show a bold white eyering, which I don't see in this last photo, 
either. 


Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 

________________________________________
From: Abdulali, Salman [ABDULALIS AT ecu.edu]
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 7:41 PM
To: Carolinaleps
Subject: Pitt County, August 25

Today, 2010-08-25, in Pitt County:

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Cloudless Sulphur
Sleepy Orange
Cabbage White
Gray Hairstreak
Red-banded Hairstreak, 2, Pitt County Arboretum
Eastern Tailed-Blue
Summer Azure
American Snout, 1, River Park North
Monarch
Variegated Fritillary
Red-spotted Purple
Viceroy
Pearl Crescent
Eastern Comma, 1, River Park North
Common Buckeye
Red Admiral
American Lady
Carolina Satyr

Silver-spotted Skipper
Checkered-Skipper
Horace's Duskywing
Ocola Skipper
Least Skipper, 1, River Park North
Fiery Skipper
Clouded Skipper
Dion Skipper, 1, River Park North

Mystery Skipper #1, at River Park North. Is this a Dun with an unusually 
prominent spot-band, or something else? 

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25a.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25b.jpg

Mystery Skipper #2, also at River Park North. Unfortunately, I did not get to 
see the underside. Is this a Eufala? 

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25c.jpg

Salman Abdulali
Greenville, NC
Subject: Pitt County, August 25
From: "Abdulali, Salman" <ABDULALIS AT ecu.edu>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 19:41:53 -0400
Today, 2010-08-25, in Pitt County:

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Cloudless Sulphur
Sleepy Orange
Cabbage White
Gray Hairstreak
Red-banded Hairstreak, 2, Pitt County Arboretum
Eastern Tailed-Blue
Summer Azure
American Snout, 1, River Park North
Monarch
Variegated Fritillary
Red-spotted Purple
Viceroy
Pearl Crescent
Eastern Comma, 1, River Park North
Common Buckeye
Red Admiral
American Lady
Carolina Satyr

Silver-spotted Skipper
Checkered-Skipper
Horace's Duskywing
Ocola Skipper
Least Skipper, 1, River Park North
Fiery Skipper
Clouded Skipper
Dion Skipper, 1, River Park North

Mystery Skipper #1, at River Park North. Is this a Dun with an unusually 
prominent spot-band, or something else? 

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25a.jpg
http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25b.jpg

Mystery Skipper #2, also at River Park North. Unfortunately, I did not get to 
see the underside. Is this a Eufala? 

http://personal.ecu.edu/abdulalis/Skipper2010-08-25c.jpg

Salman Abdulali
Greenville, NC
Subject: Transylvania NABA count
From: Ruth Young <reyoung1227 AT bellsouth.net>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 19:29:36 -0400
Just a reminder that the Transylvania Butterfly Count will be held on  
Tuesday, August 31.  Meet at the Forest Gate Shopping Center at the  
intersection of US 64, 276, and 280. We will meet at 9AM at the  
"front corner" of the parking lot in front of the BiLo Grocery Store  
(closest to the road).  The Bilo Deli sells sandwiches and there is a  
SubWay Restaurant in the shopping center.  Some areas we will cover  
are Cathy's Creek Road, the Fish Hatchery, and the Pink Beds.  Diana  
Fritillaries are always possible in any of these locations.  This is  
a late date for the count.  We will see how the date influences our  
results.  There is not a raindate scheduled at this time.  Contact  
Ruth Young for further information.  828-687-0805, 828-712-2331, or  
reyoung1227 AT bellsouth.net.
Subject: 2nd try photos intermediate Tiger swallowtail
From: "Loretta" <butterflies_bg AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 17:22:31 -0400

This is a 2nd attempt for those who weren't able to pull up the photos in
yesterdays posting.

This fresh female intermediate Tiger swallowtail was photographed in my
garden on August 21st and 22nd.  She nectared for several hours on the
phlox, agastache and dianthus, all located within a small area outside my
back door.  I haven't seen her since Sunday morning.

This marks my third intermediate Tiger swallowtail this season.  The first
was sighted briefly in early-mid July, but didn't hang around long enough
for a good identification, nor a photo session.  I knew it was different,
but couldn't describe it in such a short time.

July 28, about 5pm, another one bombed into the garden, was here about 5
minutes, and didn't reappear.  About that time, the first intermediate Tiger
swallowtail was reported on carolinaleps, so when I saw this one, I broke
out the camera.  She was very active, and difficult to photograph, but these
were quite acceptable for identification.

Loretta Lutman,
Asheboro
http://home.roadrunner.com/~pzg/LMLpics/int_tiger
Subject: 8/24/10 Butterflies in Western Guilford Co., NC
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:25:53 -0400
8/24/10 Western Guilford Co.
 
In our ongoing search for milkweed species this summer, Mark Rose and I
spent much of the day slowly driving along rural roads in Guilford County,
NC, on Tuesday, 8/24/10. This time we were in the western part of the county
near the border with Forsyth County, mostly between High Point and I-40,
plus a brief mid afternoon run to scout the far northwestern corner. The
weather was very pleasant for us humans, mostly cloudy with brief periods of
sun, temperatures in the upper 70s and low 80s, and a refreshing breeze. We
were in the field for about 5.5 hours. As usual, we noted the butterflies we
saw.
 
Common Buckeyes were everywhere at nearly every stop and along roadsides. We
came upon a group of 15 that seemed to have just emerged, as they were quite
fresh, hanging about on grass stems, and fluttering around. We ventured into
the edge of a nearby field to look at something else and found what seemed
to be dozens of Common Buckeye caterpillars in the grass on what probably
was Plantago lanceolata. We had to be careful not to step on them, there
were so many.
 
Eastern Tiger Swallowtails continue to be abundant, although declining in
numbers from the peak a month ago. Likewise, Cloudless Sulphurs are
abundant. There are still many Sleepy Oranges, although there were fewer
here than in the southeastern corner of the county over the last week or so.
We spotted at least four Little Yellows, possibly a couple more, a good
count in this part of the world. Orange Sulphurs and Cabbage Whites, which
have been conspicuously uncommon over the last two months, may be making a
comeback.
 
Here¹s our list (first number Guilford, second Forsyth):
 
E. Tiger Swallowtail 60+, 15
Cabbage White 4, 1
Orange Sulphur 7, 0
Cloudless Sulphur 60+, 20
Little Yellow 1, 3
Sleepy Orange 50+, 10
Eastern Tailed-Blue 6, 0
Variegated Fritillary 9, 0
Pearl Crescent 5, 0
Common Buckeye 100+, 7
Red-spotted Purple 2, 1
Viceroy 1, 0
Carolina Satyr 4, 0
Monarch 8, 1
Silver-spotted Skipper 3
Common Sootywing 1, 0
Sachem 1, 0
Zabulon 1, 0
 
Dennis
-- 
Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/


Subject: Re: Please remove from Listserv
From: Alex Netherton <danetherton AT charter.net>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:19:15 -0400
Folks, if the moderator or owner is out of town, on vacation, or not in 
the mood to check the computer, it could take days, or in some cases of 
hands off types of moderators, never.
Honestly, you subscribed OK. What happened between then and now?
Just grumpy today...

Alex Netherton
Asheville, NC
danetherton AT charter.net
http://blueridgediscovery.com



Will Cook wrote:
> To unsubscribe, send a message to sympa AT duke.edu with this text in the 
> body of the message:
>
>     unsubscribe carolinaleps
>
> See http://www.duke.edu/~jspippen/carolinaleps.htm for more info.
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com 
> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3093 - Release Date: 08/25/10 
02:34:00 

>
>   
Subject: Re:
From: Alex Netherton <danetherton AT charter.net>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:52:05 -0400
Unless the moderator is about, it is pretty much do it yourself. 
Hopefully, someone will remember how to do it; I have forgotten... 
Something about writing to sympa AT duke.edu and putting "unsubscribe 
carolinaleps" in the body of the message (without the quotes).

Alex Netherton
Asheville, NC
danetherton AT charter.net
http://blueridgediscovery.com



Jessica Messer wrote:
> I would like to be removed from the listserve please. Thank you
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com 
> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3093 - Release Date: 08/25/10 
02:34:00 

>
>   
Subject: Butterfly Symposium Sat. Aug. 28
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:34:11 -0400
Butterfliers, 

There is still time to plan to attend the Carolina Butterfly Society
Butterfly Symposium this coming Saturday, August 28th. It will be held at
the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC. (We alternate our annual
symposiums between South Carolina and North Carolina.) Here is the
preliminary agenda:

Registration 8:30-9:15 AM

Speakers:

Bobby Ward, Author of ³Chlorophyll in His Veins², biography of J.C. Raulston

Brian Bockhahn, ³Monarch Migration & Monitoring at Falls Lake, SRA²

Mike Dunn, ³Caterpillarology ­ A look at the secret world of caterpillars
and how to photograph them²

Brian Bockhahn, ³Watching Butterflies & other Insects at Falls Lake, SRA²

Registration is just $20, and includes a garden tour of Raulston Arboretum,
a great place to practice butterfly identification skills. We also will have
a butterfly plant sale where you can get some host and nectar plants for
your yard and garden.

Note that it's now past the deadline to get in on the catered lunch, so plan
to bring your own food and drink.

Not only will we learn from others about raising, attracting, and studying
butterflies, the symposium will be a great opportunity to network with
butterfliers from both Carolinas and surrounding states.

For additional information, contact Cyndy Hummel at mchummel AT mindspring.com

I hope to see you at the 2010 CBS Butterfly Symposium this coming Saturday!

Dennis
-- 
Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/

Subject: Re: Please remove from Listserv
From: Will Cook <cwcook AT duke.edu>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:48:03 -0400
To unsubscribe, send a message to sympa AT duke.edu with this text in the 
body of the message:

     unsubscribe carolinaleps

See http://www.duke.edu/~jspippen/carolinaleps.htm for more info.


-- 
Charles W. (Will) Cook                  w 919-660-5144
http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook            cwcook AT duke.edu
Box 90338, Biology Dept., Duke Univ., Durham, NC 27708
Subject: Please remove me from the listserv
From: Kathy Collier <colliersnook AT hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:47:00 -0400
Please remove me from the listserv.
 
Thank you,
Kathy Collier 		 	   		  
Subject: Please remove from Listserv
From: "Carol Asalon" <Carol.Asalon AT furman.edu>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:44:54 -0400
Hi, I'd like to be removed from the listserv. Â Thanks!

Carol Asalon
Riley Institute at Furman 
Business Manager
Phone: 864-294-3251
Fax: 864-294-3513

www.rileyinstitute.org

Follow us!
www.twitter.com/riley_institute
www.facebook.com/riley.institute
Subject: RE: Triangle Butterflies
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:15:55 -0400
For those of you curious folks, Will Cook, Jeff Pippen, and I are in complete 
agreement that all 5 of Richard's "Tawny-edged" are, as the three of us 
suspected without even checking the books, indeed Crossline Skippers. One can 
see considerable orangish/yellow on the HW from above; Tawny-edged is typically 
all-brown here. There is a bit too much orange beyond the black stigma on most 
of the above photos. The underside photo is clearly a Crossline; it doesn't 
even remind one of a Tawny-edged. Tawny-edged is really brown on the HW, and 
normally has no spot band, but the ground color is never ochre, tan, or 
yellowish, and there is typically much more contrast between the brown of the 
HW with the orange of the FW (see photos in guides -- though the underside 
photo in Cech's book for Crossline is a poor choice -- too brown, though it is 
a Crossline.) 


REMINDER: In the Piedmont, Crossline is 10 to often locally 100 times more 
common that Tawny-edged. I get nervous with reports of more Tawny-edged than 
Crosslines on a trip or butterfly count. Assume a Crossline unless you are 
quite certain. Check the Glassberg, Kaufman, and Cech photo books. 


Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 

________________________________________
From: Richard Stickney [Richard.Stickney AT ncmls.org]
Sent: Tuesday, August 24, 2010 10:33 AM
To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu
Subject: Triangle Butterflies

Hi all,

As usual, I got around this weekend and looked in a couple of good places. On 
8/21 (late afternoon) and 8/23 (early afternoon) I checked out the NC 751 
powerline cut near US 70 in Durham/Orange County (not sure exactly which). This 
is a nice site with lots of goldenrod, boneset, sneezeweed and other 
composites, and Jeff Pippen saw tons of Swarthy Skippers there on the count. 
Surprisingly, I saw none that I could certainly identify. I did see some good 
ones: 


Tiger Swallowtail lots, fewer than a couple weeks ago, most getting worn
Sleepy Orange 10
Cloudless Sulphur 3 - one ovipositing on Partridge Pea, but no caterpillars 
(Looked like good site for Little Yellow, but none there) 

Eastern Tailed Blue 15
Gray Hairstreak 3
Juniper Hairstreak 3
American Lady 1 – first seen in 2 or 3 weeks
Red Admiral 1
Great Spangled Fritillary 1
Pearl Crescent 6
Buckeye lots – been abundant everywhere lately
Monarch 2
Carolina Satyr 12
Common Wood Nymph 2 – large and light-colored
Fiery Skipper – only 1
Sachem lots
Silver-Spotted Skipper 2 – should have been more with Bush Lespedeza everywhere
Little Glassywing 3
Southern Broken-Dash about 20
Duskywings about 10, I would guess Horace’s and a couple of Wild Indigo
Worn brown skippers – several, hard to tell if Dun, Swarthy, or Little 
Glassywing 

Dion Skipper 5 all male, got some nice photos
Delaware Skipper 3
Checkered Skipper 2
Least Skipper 2
Zabulon Skipper 1 female
Probable Tawny-Edged Skipper about 20, lifer if correct, see my Flickr

On 8/22, I visited the JC Raulston Arboretum and found the common species in 
their usual numbers, with several Common Sootywings thrown in. There are some 
weedy Amaranths around, and I was hoping for Hayhurst’s Scallopwings. Perhaps 
we’ll see some at the symposium (which I will be attending in the afternoon). 


This past week at the Museum, I saw several Wild Indigo Duskywings as they 
emerged from their pupal leaf shelters. 


Richard Stickney
NC Museum of Life and Science
www.flickr.com/photos/rstickney
www.flickr.com/photos/ncmls


Subject: Mecklenburg County butterfly bonanza 8/24
From: Alan Kneidel <akneidel AT gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 19:13:45 -0400
Hey folks,

Today, 8/24/10, I spent a full afternoon at a section of the David B. Waymer
Flying Fields in Mecklenburg County. Having covered this area for the South
Lake Norman Butterfly Count nine days beforehand, I was aware that there was
a large, pure blooming expanse of Dogbane(Apocynum cannabium) and adjacent
patches of Swamp Milkweed(Asclepias incarnata), the milkweed of which had
yet bloom. I decided to return today..

The 7 x 50 meter expanse of flowers lies in a natural gas pipeline ROW that
runs downhill through second growth into bottomland forest. The lower
section of the pipeline is partially inundated with water dominated with
carex sp., with a few scattered patches of blooming ironweed(Vernonia
altisimma) along the border. At the base of the ROW there is a trail that
enters the bottomland forest, where there are large stands of river
cane(Arundinaria gigantea).

Today I was able(with much patience) to locate 50 species within this
section. With exception of the cane-specialists and woodland/swamp species,
all others were at one point or another on the dogbane. It was truly a
spectacle unlike any other I have seen! Here is the list:

Zebra Swallowtail - 3
Black Swallowtail - 2
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail - 15
Spicebush Swallowtail - 1
Cabbage White - 3
Clouded Sulphur - 2
Cloudless Sulphur - 4
LITTLE YELLOW - 1
Sleepy Orange - 3
GREAT PURPLE HAIRSTREAK - 1
Red-banded Hairstreak - 1
JUNIPER HAIRSTREAK - 1
Gray Hairstreak - 2
Summer Azure - 1
Eastern Tailed-Blue - 30
American Snout - 1
Variegated Fritillary - 16
Pearl Crescent - 20
Question Mark - 1
PAINTED LADY - 1
American Lady - 3
Red Admiral - 2
Common Buckeye - 40
Red-spotted Purple - 3
Viceroy - 1
Hackberry Emperor - 1
NORTHERN PEARLY-EYE - 2
CREOLE PEARLY-EYE - 2
APPALACHIAN BROWN - 6
Gemmed Satyr - 2
Carolina Satyr - 60
Monarch - 14 adults - many cats
Silver-spotted Skipper - 50
Southern Cloudywing - 1
Horace's Duskywing - 1
Common Checkered-Skipper - 3
Common Sootywing - 1
Clouded Skipper - 4
Least Skipper - 30
Fiery Skipper - 40
TAWNY-EDGED SKIPPER - 1
Crossline Skipper - 2
Southern Broken-Dash - 1
Little Glassywing - 2
Sachem - 60
DELAWARE SKIPPER - 1
Zabulon Skipper - 4
Dun Skipper - 6
LACE-WINGED ROADSIDE-SKIPPER - 1
OCOLA SKIPPER - 8

Not sure if anyone want so to check the spot out... but just in case... the
flying fields are located at the end of Holbrooks Road in Huntersville. You
will see the flying fields on your left, and a landfill on the right. If you
pull into the flying field parking lot, you will see a large covered gazebo
and parking lot. The pipeline ROW is southeast of the gazebo, downhill, and
accessible by walking down through the lespedeza. It also possible to access
the ROW right at the entrance gate to the flying fields, the top of the ROW
being just a few feet east of the gate. Exact coordinates of the patch:
35°24'16.24"N, 80°48'50.70"W

Cheers,
-- 
Alan H. Kneidel
980-254-2706
akneidel AT gmail.com
Subject: Please Remove from Listserv
From: Alex Curio <curio.alex AT gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:05:14 -0700
Hi, I'd like to be removed from the listserv.  Thanks!

-- 
Alex Curio, M.A.

Assistant to the Director
The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture
acurio AT u.washington.edu
www.burkemuseum.org
Subject: No Subject
From: Jessica Messer <jmmesser AT uncc.edu>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:04:10 -0400
I would like to be removed from the listserve please. Thank you
Subject: photos, intermediate Tiger swallowtail
From: "Loretta" <butterflies_bg AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 13:32:16 -0400
Click on one of the websites below to see photos of an intermediate female 
Tiger swallowtail that visited my garden Saturday and Sunday. 





http://home.roadrunner.com/~pzg/LMLpics/int_tiger/ 
Subject: Re: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
From: Alex Netherton <danetherton AT charter.net>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:15:17 -0400
Nice to see that Palamedes are still doing well. That hairstreak is a 
beauty!

Alex Netherton
Asheville, NC
danetherton AT charter.net
http://blueridgediscovery.com



TNT Sanders wrote:
> My wife Tammy and I were also near Beaufort, NC this weekend for some nature 
watching. 

> At the "Cedar Point Tideland Trail" in Cape Carteret, NC we had:
>  
> Salt Marsh Skipper (8)
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922858013/
>  
> Juniper Hairstreak (5)
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922856385/
>  
> Byssus Skipper (1)
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922854631/
>  
> along with...
>  
> Palamedes Swallowtail (9)
> Spicebush Swallowtail (1)
> Orange Sulphur (6)
> Cloudless Sulphur (12)
> Red-banded Hairstreak (1)
> Summer Azure (1)
> Gulf Fritillary (1)
> Horace's Duskywing (1)
> Fiery Skipper (2)
>  
> This was our first time visiting this part of the NC coast and really enjoyed 
the area. 

>  
> Tom Sanders
> Charlotte, NC
>
> ----------------------------------------
>   
>> From: jfuss AT clis.com
>> To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu
>> Subject: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
>> Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 13:11:11 -0400
>>
>> This morning we saw several Southern Skipperlings at a golf course
>> north of Beaufort. These were in low weedy patches having Bermuda
>> grass and bitter sneezeweed.
>>
>> John Fussell
>> Morehead City, NC
>> jfuss AT clis.com
>>
>>
>> 		 	   		  =
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>> No virus found in this incoming message.
>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com 
>> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3091 - Release Date: 08/24/10 
02:34:00 

>>
>>     
Subject: Triangle Butterflies
From: "Richard Stickney" <Richard.Stickney AT ncmls.org>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 10:33:19 -0400
Hi all,

 

As usual, I got around this weekend and looked in a couple of good
places. On 8/21 (late afternoon) and 8/23 (early afternoon) I checked
out the NC 751 powerline cut near US 70 in Durham/Orange County (not
sure exactly which). This is a nice site with lots of goldenrod,
boneset, sneezeweed and other composites, and Jeff Pippen saw tons of
Swarthy Skippers there on the count. Surprisingly, I saw none that I
could certainly identify. I did see some good ones:

 

Tiger Swallowtail lots, fewer than a couple weeks ago, most getting worn

Sleepy Orange 10

Cloudless Sulphur 3 - one ovipositing on Partridge Pea, but no
caterpillars (Looked like good site for Little Yellow, but none there)

Eastern Tailed Blue 15

Gray Hairstreak 3

Juniper Hairstreak 3

American Lady 1 - first seen in 2 or 3 weeks

Red Admiral 1

Great Spangled Fritillary 1

Pearl Crescent 6

Buckeye lots - been abundant everywhere lately

Monarch 2

Carolina Satyr 12

Common Wood Nymph 2 - large and light-colored

Fiery Skipper - only 1

Sachem lots

Silver-Spotted Skipper 2 - should have been more with Bush Lespedeza
everywhere

Little Glassywing 3

Southern Broken-Dash about 20

Duskywings about 10, I would guess Horace's and a couple of Wild Indigo

Worn brown skippers - several, hard to tell if Dun, Swarthy, or Little
Glassywing

Dion Skipper 5 all male, got some nice photos

Delaware Skipper 3

Checkered Skipper 2

Least Skipper 2

Zabulon Skipper 1 female

Probable Tawny-Edged Skipper about 20, lifer if correct, see my Flickr

 

On 8/22, I visited the JC Raulston Arboretum and found the common
species in their usual numbers, with several Common Sootywings thrown
in. There are some weedy Amaranths around, and I was hoping for
Hayhurst's Scallopwings. Perhaps we'll see some at the symposium (which
I will be attending in the afternoon).

 

This past week at the Museum, I saw several Wild Indigo Duskywings as
they emerged from their pupal leaf shelters.

 

Richard Stickney

NC Museum of Life and Science

www.flickr.com/photos/rstickney

www.flickr.com/photos/ncmls

 

 

 
Subject: Checkered White report
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 09:55:40 -0400
Ali Iyoob forward to me a Flickr website photo of a female Checkered White, 
taken by John Flannery, in the Ellerbe area of Richmond County, NC, on August 
20. This species is severely declining in NC, and we get very few reports any 
more. We also had a surprising one (also with excellent photo) that the 
Kastners and others had not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway a couple of weeks 
ago; this was reported to carolinaleps already. 


Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)


Subject: RE: Tideland Nature Trail
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 09:50:40 -0400
Excellent photos! We can always use more coastal reports of Juniper Hairstreak, 
as well as Byssus Skipper. 


Harry LeGrand

Harry LeGrand, Vertebrate Zoologist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
NCDENR Office of Conservation, Planning, & Community Affairs
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Office: (919) 715-8697
harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov
www.ncnhp.org

E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North 
Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties. 


Note my new e-mail address (above)





-----Original Message-----
From: TNT Sanders [mailto:tsanders1993 AT msn.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, August 24, 2010 9:35 AM
To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu
Subject: RE: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC


My wife Tammy and I were also near Beaufort, NC this weekend for some nature 
watching. 

At the "Cedar Point Tideland Trail" in Cape Carteret, NC we had:
 
Salt Marsh Skipper (8)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922858013/
 
Juniper Hairstreak (5)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922856385/
 
Byssus Skipper (1)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922854631/
 
along with...
 
Palamedes Swallowtail (9)
Spicebush Swallowtail (1)
Orange Sulphur (6)
Cloudless Sulphur (12)
Red-banded Hairstreak (1)
Summer Azure (1)
Gulf Fritillary (1)
Horace's Duskywing (1)
Fiery Skipper (2)
 
This was our first time visiting this part of the NC coast and really enjoyed 
the area. 

 
Tom Sanders
Charlotte, NC

----------------------------------------
> From: jfuss AT clis.com
> To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu
> Subject: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
> Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 13:11:11 -0400
>
> This morning we saw several Southern Skipperlings at a golf course
> north of Beaufort. These were in low weedy patches having Bermuda
> grass and bitter sneezeweed.
>
> John Fussell
> Morehead City, NC
> jfuss AT clis.com
>
>
> 		 	   		  
Subject: RE: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
From: TNT Sanders <tsanders1993 AT msn.com>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 09:34:52 -0400
My wife Tammy and I were also near Beaufort, NC this weekend for some nature 
watching. 

At the "Cedar Point Tideland Trail" in Cape Carteret, NC we had:
 
Salt Marsh Skipper (8)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922858013/
 
Juniper Hairstreak (5)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922856385/
 
Byssus Skipper (1)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnt-nature/4922854631/
 
along with...
 
Palamedes Swallowtail (9)
Spicebush Swallowtail (1)
Orange Sulphur (6)
Cloudless Sulphur (12)
Red-banded Hairstreak (1)
Summer Azure (1)
Gulf Fritillary (1)
Horace's Duskywing (1)
Fiery Skipper (2)
 
This was our first time visiting this part of the NC coast and really enjoyed 
the area. 

 
Tom Sanders
Charlotte, NC

----------------------------------------
> From: jfuss AT clis.com
> To: carolinaleps AT duke.edu
> Subject: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
> Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 13:11:11 -0400
>
> This morning we saw several Southern Skipperlings at a golf course
> north of Beaufort. These were in low weedy patches having Bermuda
> grass and bitter sneezeweed.
>
> John Fussell
> Morehead City, NC
> jfuss AT clis.com
>
>
> 		 	   		  
Subject: 8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies - Addendum
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 21:43:01 -0400
I accidentally left off Common Buckeye 15.

on 8/23/10 9:40 PM, Dennis Burnette at deburnette AT triad.rr.com wrote:

> 8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies
>  
> Mark Rose and I were back in southeastern Guilford County, NC this morning
> looking for milkweed species. As in the past, we counted butterflies along
> the rural roads. The star species today was Cloudless Sulphur. We saw them
> every 5 or 6 minutes along the roads, sometimes several at a time, and could
> see them across the adjacent farm fields. We found that both E. Tiger
> Swallowtails and Orange Sulphurs continue to decline from their peaks but
> still are abundant. We had 5 monarchs in SE Guilford and one in Greensboro.
> We looked for caterpillars on the three milkweed species we examined, but
> didn¹t find any.
> 
> Here¹s our list for the day:
>  
> E. Tiger Swallowtail 50+
> Pipevine Swallowtail 2 (Very worn)
> Cabbage White 1 (in Greensboro)
> Orange Sulphur 2
> Sleepy Orange 60+
> Cloudless Sulphur 100+
> Gray Hairstreak 1 (worn)
> Eastern Tailed-Blue 7
> Variegated Fritillary 2
> Pearl Crescent 5
> Monarch 6 (1 in Greensboro)
> Silver-spotted Skipper 3
> Sachem 2
> Zabulon Skipper 1
>  
> Dennis

Subject: 8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies
From: Dennis Burnette <deburnette AT triad.rr.com>
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 21:40:27 -0400
8/23/10 SE Guilford Co. Butterflies
 
Mark Rose and I were back in southeastern Guilford County, NC this morning
looking for milkweed species. As in the past, we counted butterflies along
the rural roads. The star species today was Cloudless Sulphur. We saw them
every 5 or 6 minutes along the roads, sometimes several at a time, and could
see them across the adjacent farm fields. We found that both E. Tiger
Swallowtails and Orange Sulphurs continue to decline from their peaks but
still are abundant. We had 5 monarchs in SE Guilford and one in Greensboro.
We looked for caterpillars on the three milkweed species we examined, but
didn¹t find any.

Here¹s our list for the day:
 
E. Tiger Swallowtail 50+
Pipevine Swallowtail 2 (Very worn)
Cabbage White 1 (in Greensboro)
Orange Sulphur 2
Sleepy Orange 60+
Cloudless Sulphur 100+
Gray Hairstreak 1 (worn)
Eastern Tailed-Blue 7
Variegated Fritillary 2
Pearl Crescent 5
Monarch 6 (1 in Greensboro)
Silver-spotted Skipper 3
Sachem 2
Zabulon Skipper 1
 
Dennis
-- 
Dennis Burnette
Greensboro, NC
Guilford County
deburnette AT triad.rr.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisburnette/


Subject: Orange County= Monarchs & skippers
From: birdcr AT concentric.net
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:11:32 -0400
Folks,
Today while in my truck I saw 5 Monarchs along the roadside, 3 were on 
one Swamp Milkweed.

 It has been maybe 5 or so years since we had a Delaware Skipper in the 
garden here.Today I found a female Delaware on the verbena in the garden. 

On Saturday I observed a female Hayhurst's Scallopwing laying eggs on the 
lambsquarters I let them have next to the garden. We seem to get them 
yearly now, but this was their first appearance this year.

Cheers,
Randy Emmitt
Rougemont, NC
Subject: Green Comma
From: "Gail Lankford" <whocooksforyou AT skyrunner.net>
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 17:44:26 -0400
Newest addition to yard list. Right in front of house. Thanks to my husband, 
who was getting ready to shovel and move pile of nice dirt for planting 
trees, I saw it. Charlie came to the door and told me there was a very dark 
orange fresh looking anglewing, in case I wanted to see it. Glad I did!
Gail Lankford
Buncombe County 





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Subject: Yauhanna Trails on 8-22
From: "Jack" <jp5810 AT sccoast.net>
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:33:07 -0500
Hi Carolina butterfliers,
Yesterday from 10:20 to 12:30 I birded and looked for butterflies along 
the Yauhanna Trails (north) along the Pee Dee River in Horry County, SC. 
The weather was actually quite comfortable reaching into the mid 80's 
but humid and virtually windless. The birding was poor but the 
butterflies were very good. One puzzling butterfly and one equally 
puzzling plant that most of the grass skippers were nectoring on.  Here 
goes:
 Spicebush Swallowtail-1 male
Cloudless Sulphur-4
Sleepy Orange-2
Pearl Crescrent-1
Red Admiral-1
Carolina Satyr-6 plus other satyr types I couldn't catch up with
Monarch-1 or 2
Silver spotted Skipper-1
Clouded Skipper-3
Least Skipper-12
Byssus Skipper-3 ided from below by pale patch on hindwing vaguely 
forming a backward 7
Dun Skipper-4
I did not find any pearly-eyes or Palamedes which was surprising.

Also a mid size grass skipper seen from below whose ground color was a 
gold orange with super prominent white veining no other marks.  It most 
resembled in the field guide a Arogos Skipper which is not likely 
because the habitat is  wrong  or Berry's Skipper and the habitat would 
be correct but the veining was still much more prominent.  I don't think 
it is a Delaware for the same reason.
And now for the plant.  This plant was widespred on the trail.
It was about six inches to a foot tall on a single stem with a large 
flat green leaf on the ground (elephant ear or elephant foot?)and a 
cluster of fuzzy blue white flowers at the top.  The butterflies seemed 
to like it as well as the various grasses growing on the trail. 
Otherwise the only nector plant was the Vervane growing along the trail 
at the powerline cut.  Any help on the butterfly id or the plant would 
be appreciated.

Jack Peachey
Conway, SC






Subject: Sandy Mush Gamelands
From: "Doug Johnston" <wellsteadwest AT gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 20:30:42 -0400
I spent a delightful few hours today with Tina and Stuart Wade, walking part of 
Sandy Mush Gamelands. We spent most of our time in Buncombe county (list 1), 
but crossed the trestle bridge into Madison County for a while too (list 2). Of 
note were the four Tawny emperors which came visiting our clothing (the day was 
warm!). 


E Tiger swallowtail  4,   0
Spicebush swallowtail  3,  0
Pipevine swallowtail  2,  0
Cabbage white  8,  2
Clouded sulphur  6,  1
Orange sulphur  1,  0
Cloudless sulphur  5,  2
Little yellow  1,  0
Gray hairstreak  1,  0
Eastern tailed blue  20, 6
Summer azure  1,  1
Great spangled fritillary  1,  0
Silvery checkerspot  4,  0
Pearl crescent  50+, 20
Question mark  3,  0
E comma  6,  0
Red admiral  12,  4
Common buckeye  10,  5
Red spotted purple  13,  3  - many were enjoying the ripe black cherries
Tawny emperor  0,  4
Northern pearlyeye  30+, 12
Carolina satyr  40+,  15
Common wood nymph  1,  0
Silver spotted skipper  8,  3
Duskywing sp  0,  1
Clouded skipper  2,  2
Least skipper  20+, 12
Sachem  13,  6
Zabulon skipper  0,  1
Dun skipper  3,  2
Lace winged roadside skipper  0,  1

Doug Johnston
Sandy Mush Gamelands
Subject: Painted Lady
From: "Gail Lankford" <whocooksforyou AT skyrunner.net>
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:43:08 -0400
Had one Aug. 20 in front of my house on lantana. First of year. I did not 
notice on the recent NABA count reports  if any were seen.
Gail Lankford
Buncombe County 





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Subject: Southern Skipperlings near Beaufort, NC
From: "John Fussell" <jfuss AT clis.com>
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 13:11:11 -0400
This morning we saw several Southern Skipperlings at a golf course 
north of Beaufort.  These were in low weedy patches having Bermuda 
grass and bitter sneezeweed.

John Fussell
Morehead City, NC
jfuss AT clis.com


Subject: Long-tailed Skipper in S. Durham County
From: "Tom Krakauer" <Tkrakauer AT mindspring.com>
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 11:24:48 -0400
This morning in Woodcroft in S. Durham Co, my friend, Lynn Richardson,
spotted a very fresh, Long-tailed Skipper nectaring in her Lantana.

 

Nice to see.

 

Tom Krakauer

Bahama, NC 27503

 

 
Subject: Abundant Queens, Zebra Heliconian at Kiawah Island yesterday
From: Nathan Dias <diasn AT yahoo.com>
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 06:37:15 -0700 (PDT)
Queen butterflies were plentiful around the east end of Kiawah Island 
yesterday. Despite being on a tight shorebird schedule, I had to stop for some 
photos in a couple of places. 


I was lucky enough to capture a Queen in the act of ovipositing on a host plant 
- Gulf Coast Swallow-wort (Cynanchum angustifolium). This plant is sometimes 
known as "Vine Milkweed". 


Photos here:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolinabugpics/

A closeup:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolinabugpics/4915554075/sizes/l/in/photostream/

The Queens' favored nectar sources were Swallow-wort, Frogfruit, and some 
remaining Salicornia blooms. 


My butterfly list yesterday at E. Kiawah:

Giant Swallowtail
Black Swallowtail
Palamedes Swallowtail
Orange Sulphur
Sleepy Orange
Cloudless Sulphur (only 1)
E. Pygmy-Blue
Zebra Heliconian 
Gulf Fritillary
Phaon Crescent
Buckeye
Monarch
Queen (lots)
Silver-spotted Skipper
Horace's Duskywing
Common Checkered-skipper
Fiery Skipper
Whirlabout

While briefly checking a nearby wooded clearing and maritime forest for avian 
migrants, I found American Snout, Tawny Emperor, Red-spoted Purple and Carolina 
Satyr. 


I did not have time on the way out to stop at The Sancturary's horticultural 
area to look for Cassius Blues. 


Nathan Dias - Charleston SC


      
Subject: Francis Marion National Forest part 2
From: dhdarter AT comcast.net
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 02:21:21 +0000 (UTC)
I spent Sunday afternoon in the Francis Marion National Forest in a different 
area from my last posting. Found 325 individuals of 19 species. 


Palamedes Swallotail - 128 
Pipevine Swallowtail - 2 
Tiger Swallowtail - 1 
unid swallowtail - 1 
Red Spotted Purple - 3 
Cloudless Sulphur - 91 
Sleepy Orange - 10 
Little Yellow - 8 
Common Wood Nymph - 1 Yellow Square type 
Georgia Satyr - 1 
Gulf Frittilary - 2 
Buckeye - 7 
Little Metalmark - 12 
Pearl Creasant - 20 
Southern Cloudywing - 2 
Horaces Duskywing - 1 
unid duskywing - 1 
Crossline Skipper - 9 
Southern Broken Dash Skipper - 3 
Checkered/White Skipper - 1 
Red Admiral - 1 

Don Hicks 
Charleston, SC 
Subject: Dukes' Skippers at Flanners Beach in Croatan National Forest
From: "John Fussell" <jfuss AT clis.com>
Date: Sat, 21 Aug 2010 19:11:56 -0400
This afternoon I saw about 10 Dukes' Skippers in swamp forests near 
Otter Creek, NW of the Flanners Beach Rec Area, Croatan National 
Forest.

This year I have not seen any Dukes' in the spot that was so 
convenient last year (where a boardwalk crosses suitable habitat only 
about 500' from the recreation area).  That site seems drier this 
year, and the sedge (Carex hyalinolepis) a bit sparser.

Today I had to walk at least 1/4 mile from the rec area before I found 
the skippers.

John Fussell
Morehead City, NC
jfuss AT clis.com


Subject: Wake County, NC, butterflies
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Sat, 21 Aug 2010 18:58:12 -0400
Finally, I saw a lot of butterflies in Wake County, for just 90 minutes of 
looking. This, despite N.C. State U. seemingly trying to eliminate butterflies 
and their habitats on the farmlands along Mid-Pines Rd. and Inwood Rds; these 
fields keep getting worse by the year, as there are practically no cow pastures 
now, and there are more acres planted in corn and other crops. But, Yates Pond 
had a lot of things, as did the wet fields along the creek at Mid-Pines Rd. 
(seen outside the fence, sadly). And, goldenrods, sneezeweeds, and verbena 
along the first part of Mid-Pines (where it turns to gravel) were loaded. Here 
is what I had today (August 21), from 3-4:30 pm, on another sunny and hot day. 


Black Swallowtail  1  male
E. Tiger Swallowtail  10
Cabbage White  15   Checkered White might now be permanently gone
Clouded Sulphur  1
Orange Sulphur  100
Cloudless Sulphur  1    where are they?
Sleepy Orange  20
Red-banded Hairstreak  1  Yates Pond marsh edge; poor year for them in NC
Gray Hairstreak  9
E. Tailed-Blue  4
Variegated Fritillary  30
Pearl Crescent  15
Red Admiral  1    Am. Lady still hard to find
Common Buckeye  125     most maybe in day ever for me?
Viceroy  3
Carolina Satyr  1
Monarch  2
Silver-spotted Skipper  2
Horace's Duskywing  2
Common Sootywing  7   about my maximum ever for one day in Wake
Common Checkered-Skipper  8
Fiery Skipper  12
Sachem  30
Little Glassywing  1
Dun Skipper  1
Dion Skipper  1   fresh; Yates Pond marsh edge, as seen from the bridge

Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 
Subject: A few Bladen and Sampson Co., NC, butterflies
From: "Legrand, Harry" <harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov>
Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:43:14 -0400
My work got me to a bottomland in Bladen County along the Cape Fear River today 
(Aug. 20). The weather was poor -- overnight rain, cloudy, and humid, with wet 
vegetation. It was a struggle to see anything along the jeep tracks and edges. 
I stopped at a site in Sampson County on the way home; at least, the sun had 
come out by 1 pm. Here is the paltry list, with Bladen and then Sampson: 


Zebra Swallowtail  1, 0   a surprise this time of year, but pawpaw abundant
E. Tiger Swallowtail  0, 1
Spicebush Swallowtail 0, 1
Palamedes Swallowtail  3, 0
Cloudless Sulphur  25, 50
Sleepy Orange  25, 50
E. Tailed-Blue  0, 1
Pearl Crescent  4, 0
Common Buckeye  0, 5
Viceroy  1, 0
Appalachian Brown  4, 0
Zarucco Duskywing  0, 1  fresh male on patrol
Horace's Duskywing  0, 1   worn female
Least Skipper  1, 0
Fiery Skipper  0, 1
Swarthy Skipper  0, 1
Whirlabout  0, 1  female
Dun Skipper  1, 0

Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Planning, Conservation, and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC  27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand AT ncdenr.gov

-----------------------------------------------------
Notice: E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the 
North Carolina Public Records Law and therefore may be disclosed to third 
parties. 
Subject: Pitt County, August 20
From: "Abdulali, Salman" <ABDULALIS AT ecu.edu>
Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:32:52 -0400
Butterflies seen in Pitt County, today, 2010-08-20. One surprise today was a 
Creole Pearly-eye (but no Southerns so far this year). 


Black Swallowtail, 4
Palamedes Swallowtail, 1 at Pitt County Arboretum, first seen here since spring
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, 6
Spicebush Swallowtail, 1
Cloudless Sulphur, 10
Sleepy Orange, 5
Gray Hairstreak, 2
Red-banded Hairstreak, 1
Eastern Tailed-Blue, 2
Red-spotted Purple, 2
Viceroy, 1
Variegated Fritillary, 20+
Pearl Crescent, 10+
Eastern Comma, 1 at River Park North, first since spring
Common Buckeye, 10
Red Admiral, 4
American Lady, 1 at River Park North
CREOLE PEARLY-EYE, 1 at Boyd Lee Park, first record of the second brood from 
Pitt 


Silver-spotted Skipper, 5
Horace's Duskywing, 4
Common Sootywing, 1
Least Skipper, 1
Southern Skipperling, 1
Dun Skipper, 3
Ocola Skipper, 2 at River Park North
Fiery Skipper, 100+, swarming
Sachem, 2
Whirlabout, 3 (2 males, 1 female)

Salman Abdulali
Greenville, NC
Subject: Re: About milkweed seed
From: "Jules Fraytet" <jlfray AT ix.netcom.com>
Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 12:52:39 -0400
Hi Ina,

Thanks for pointing out these distinctions and errors. This site is usually 
about geology and weather and other atmospheric visual phenomena. I am not 
always sure of the accuracy of the science behind the essays because they may 
not be submitted by knowledgeable scientists. This submitter may have not 
studied the subject as much as you have or was using a common name for another 
plant. 


It's an interesting homepage though because of it presenting something new 
everyday and other links to science topics. 


Take care
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Ina Warren 
  To: Jules Fraytet 
  Cc: epodblog AT usra.edu 
  Sent: Friday, August 20, 2010 12:20 PM
  Subject: Re: About milkweed seed


 Jules: Thanks for posting this great website; it is new to me. It seems 
however there are some issues with the photo being identified as a milkweed. 



 First, if this is indeed one of the western milkweed species (Asclepias spp.) 
then it is only the silky, fluffy coma (parachute) that was initially attached 
to the seed, with the seed now longer showing. Milkweed seeds are substantive 
with lots of "surrounding pulp" not as the author suggests in saying, "there's 
no obvious source of nutrition for the seeds" See his wikipedia reference for 
milkweed seed at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Milkweed-in-seed2.jpg or in 
the "milkweed bursting" related link listed. 



 The photo more closely resembles a dandelion seed to me. Having a milky latex 
in the leaves, stem and root may prompt some folks in Helena, MT to call them 
milk - weeds. 



  Ina. 
  Brevard, NC




  On Aug 20, 2010, at 12:01 PM, Jules Fraytet wrote:


 Use the previous link in the upper right hand corner of the website if viewing 
after today 


    http://epod.usra.edu/ 


Subject: About milkweed seed
From: "Jules Fraytet" <jlfray AT ix.netcom.com>
Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 12:01:19 -0400
Use the previous link in the upper right hand corner of the website if 
viewing after today

http://epod.usra.edu/ 
Subject: Re: Durham Butterfly Count results
From: dorothypugh AT aol.com
Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2010 09:40:39 -0400 (EDT)
I was in the group with Randy Emmitt, Meg Millard and Glashia O'Rourke and took 
these photos: http://www.dpughphoto.com/critters_august_2010 


Dorothy Pugh
Durham, NC

 

 


 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: jspippen 
To: carolinaleps 
Sent: Wed, Aug 18, 2010 10:22 pm
Subject: Durham Butterfly Count results


Butterfliers,



On Sunday August 18, 2010 the 12th annual NABA Durham Butterfly Count was 

conducted under mostly to partly cloudy skies and warm, humid conditions. 

Lots of butterflies cooperated!  We had a very successful day, tallying 55 

butterfly species and 4616 individuals!  We had 5 separate groups 

(parties) in the field putting in a total of 27.5 party hours and 16.5 

party miles.



No new species for the Durham count were found, but Randy Emmitt's party 

had an amazing 18 Zebra Swallowtails, a species that is usually missed 

(due to brood timing) on this count.  We set several Durham Count record 

highs including Zebra Swallowtail (18), Cloudless Sulphur (299), Silvery 

Checkerspot (117), Red Admiral (60), Common Checkered-Skipper (61), and 

Swarthy Skipper (95).  Tiger Swallowtail numbers were quite low last year 

but everybody (even non-butterfliers) is noticing them this year!  Indeed, 

while we did not approach our count record for that species, we tallied 

697 of them for the day, almost twice average for this count.



On the other hand, this was the first time we've missed Hoary Edge and 

only the second time we've missed Southern Cloudywing.  Black Swallowtail 

and Monarch numbers were well below average.



Overall, it was an excellent day with lots of butterflies and relatively 

comfortable conditions for humans!



Many thanks to all participants: Salman Abdulali, Will Cook, Randy Emmitt, 

Tom Krakauer, Meg Millard, Glashia O'Rourke, Jeff Pippen, Dorothy Pugh, 

Lynn Richardson, Toni Rexrode, Richard Stickney, and Bud Webster.



Here's the final tally:



Total	Species

4	Pipevine Swallowtail

18	Zebra Swallowtail

2	Black Swallowtail

697	Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

25	Spicebush Swallowtail

10	Cabbage White

1	Clouded Sulphur

15	Orange Sulphur

299	Cloudless Sulphur

3	Little Yellow

521	Sleepy Orange

2	Juniper Hairstreak

40	Gray Hairstreak

7	Red-banded Hairstreak

170	Eastern Tailed-Blue

32	Summer Azure

9	American Snout

67	Variegated Fritillary

9	Great Spangled Fritillary

117	Silvery Checkerspot

205	Pearl Crescent

17	Question Mark

5	Eastern Comma

3	American Lady

60	Red Admiral

639	Common Buckeye

37	Red-spotted Purple

26	Viceroy

12	Hackberry Emperor

2	Tawny Emperor

8	Northern Pearly-eye

6	Gemmed Satyr

98	Carolina Satyr

4	Common Wood-Nymph

39	Monarch

118	Silver-spotted Skipper

2	Northern Cloudywing

6	Hayhurst's Scallopwing

21	Horace's Duskywing

4	Wild Indigo Duskywing

61	Com. Checkered-Skipper

1	Common Sootywing

95	Swarthy Skipper

29	Clouded Skipper

13	Least Skipper

240	Fiery Skipper

25	Crossline Skipper

65	Southern Broken-Dash

33	Little Glassywing

599	Sachem

2	Delaware Skipper

32	Zabulon Skipper

6	Dion Skipper

53	Dun Skipper

2	Ocola Skipper



Non-Adults

38	Black Swallowtail cats



Cheers,

Jeff



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Jeffrey S. Pippen

Nicholas School of the Environment

Duke University, Durham, NC  27708

PH: (919) 660-7278

http://www.duke.edu/~jspippen/nature.htm

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^