The
Know Your Place Project
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Outing Reports 2009:
These
are meant to summarize what we found during our
trips as a group but are also a place where I will post any individual
outing reports that are sent to me or that I participate in. Such
reports help people keep track of what is happening around the County.
Please send photographs - don't worry if they aren't publication
quality, anything that is identifiable is appropriate (we offer the
'anonymous photographer' option for those who wish to hide their more
modest offerings!) Additions & corrections to my reports are
welcome. When not otherwise noted, photographs are by Conrad
and were taken duirng the outing described.
RoJan Town Park, 1
September 2009, early PM.
John Piwowarksi made an outing
and sent in the below photographs of Common Checkered Skipper (plus
some Least Skipper shots).
 
This species, while reported as an "infrequent vagrant" in the 2007
Connecticut Butterfly
Atlas, has shown up in Columbia County during each of the past three
years. Apparently,
the center of this species' distribution is further south and from
there they regularly migrant into
our area. They may successfully raise one or more generations here but
then die-off in the winter.
(Photo by John Piwowarski
)
Rheinstrom Hill Audubon
Sanctuary, Hillsdale, NY, 22 August 2009, early PM
We were favored by the weather
and happened upon a window of sunshine in an otherwise rainy day. We
walked west along the old railbed which forms an artificial dike
through the wetlands, from this we made forays into the large wet
meadow north of the tracks and up into a hillside old field (at which
point it began to rain again). We picked up a few 'waste area' flyers
on our way in from the parking lot. Rough total counts for the day
(these are inexact, but should give a rough idea of relative
abundance): Cabbage White (3), Eastern Tailed Blue (4), Least Skipper
(8), Peck's Skipper (?, 1), Common Wood Nymph (2), Great Spangled
Fritillary (1), Appalachian Brown (2), Tiger Swallowtail (2), Viceroy
(3), Orange Sulphur (4), Bronze Copper (2), Northern Broken Dash (3),
Black Swallowtail (1), Wild Indigo Duskywing (1), Common Ringlet (1),
Clouded Sulphur (several), Broad Winged Skipper (3), Monarch (1), Pearl
Crescent (5). While most of these butterflies are generalists of a
sort, we owe the wetlands the occurrence of the Appalachian Brown,
Bronze Copper, and Broad Winged Skipper.
 
That's Joe-Pye Weed that this Clouded Sulphur is resting upon.
These are LARGE skippers; make one think of Silver Spotted Skippers.
Although they are somewhat smaller than that species, they are
noticeably bigger than any of the other skippers out there. This
species has been moving into are area apparently in conjunction with
the spread of Common Reed; traditionally, it was a more southerly
species.
 
Bronze Coppers (photo on right by David Lewis). Always nice to see.
This makes at least five sites where we have observed them in Columbia
County.
David Lewis' photograph of an Appalachian Brown. The caterpillars of
this species are sedge feeders so,
not surprisingly, one finds them around wet meadows.
Black Swallowtail, still out and about Actually, this is probably one
of the summer brood -
the offspring of those adults we saw back in May. (photo by David Lewis)
Common Wood Nymph. This species seems to like 'shrub savannahs', be
they wet or dry.
(Photo by David Lewis)
The relatively subdued coloration, flight time, size, and habitat are
the
clues for saying this is a Wild Indigo Duskywing. (Photo by David Lewis)
This individual Northern Broken Dash is a bit of a late flyer. (Photo
by David Lewis)
Monarch on Red Clover. We have only seen a scattering of Monarchs this
year;
rarely more than one or two on an outing. (Photo by David Lewis)
In a wet meadow and see a little blotch of black and orange weaving its
fluttering way through the grass and sedge? Chances are its a Least
Skipper.
(Photo by David Lewis)
A Great Spangled Fritllary on its throne. This is the only species of
Fritillary
that we have seen this summer. (Photo by David Lewis)
Another species with at least two distinct generation. The egg that
developed into
this Common Ringlet was laid earlier in the summer and, if it's lucky
enough to have
its own offspring, they will pass the winter as young caterpillars
before becoming
next-spring's parental generation. (Photo by David Lewis)
Cabbage Whites, on the other hand, seem to follow the 'breed early and
breed
often' maxim resulting in, for any one given date, individuals at
varying
developmental stages. As result, one finds Cabbage Whites flying (and
mating) throughout
the summer. (Photo by David Lewis)
RoJan Park, West Side
of Route 22, 8 August 2009, early PM
We walked through fields, along
forest edges, into wet meadows, and through floodplain forests. Given
the diversity of habitats, the diversity of butterflies was rather
disappointing. We saw Wild Indigo Duskywing (2), Clouded Sulphur (2),
Monarch (1), Common Checkered Skipper (1), Pearl Crescent (7), Common
Ringlet (2), Fritillary (probably Great Spangled, 2), Cabbage White
(2), Common Wood Nymph (1), Orange Sulphur (1), Least Skipper (1),
Red-Spotted Purple (1), and a single Viceroy.
Monarchs have not been particularly numerous this year. We rarely see
more than
two or three in any one outing, and often none at all.
In contrast, August seems to have been Red-Spotted Purple month. Not
that we
have seen flocks of them, but they are regular sightings.
Ok, so a photo like this would be excusable if I were photographing
tigers, but
butterflies? In any case, this is a Viceroy. Somewhat smaller than the
Monarch
and with that distinct horizontal line through the hindwing.
Greenport Conservation
Area, 25 July 2009, early PM
A hot one. We confined our
searching mainly to the open fields west of the parking area. Enough to
keep us busy, but not a dramatic diversity. We observed Monarch (2),
Common Wood Nymph (7), Pearl Crescent (very common, we stopped counting
at 50), Cabbage White (7), Black Swallowtail (6), Sulphur (all or
mostly Clouded - 5), Wild Indigo Duskywing (1), Comma (probably
Eastern, 1), Northern Broken Dash (looking pretty ragged and faded, 4).
A Wild Indigo Duskywing. Reportedly, this species used to confine its
feeding to
Wild Indigo, a relatively rare plant and hence this was a relatively
rare butterfly.
More recently, its caterpillars have included alfalfa in their
repertoire... it is now
a more common butterfly.
One of the reasons we saw so many Pearly Crescents....
We saw a few Northern Broken Dashes and a lot of Knapweed. (See
downloadable
pdf above for ID'ing tips for this species.)
A faded male Northern Broken Dash.
In and around
Harlemville and Canaan, middle to late July
Several
outings and reports show that the "Three Witches" are flying. This is a
frustrated lepidopterist's name for the confusingly similar set of
skippers composed of the Dun Skipper, Northern Broken-Dash and Little
Glassywing. I'm trying to create a little set of images to help with
their ID. When available, it will be included in the list of downloads
above. The Tawny-Edged and Deleware Skippers were also observed.
RoJan Town Park, 11
July 2009 AM
We
spent most of our time nosing around the Creek and adjacent wetlands.
The weather was sunny but there was a strong breeze. Recorded eleven
species: Question Mark, Eastern Comma, Monarch, Black Swallowtail and
Pearl Crescent (one each), Cabbage White (11), Baltimore Checkerspot
(5), Clouded Sulphur (5), Common Wood Nymphs (3), Great Spangled
Fritillaries (6) and a pair of Meadow Fritillaries. Perhaps our most
fun was in noting the difference between the two races of Common Wood
Nymphs, both of which we saw flying togther. The Common Wood Nymph form
that flies most frequently in our area has a pair of dark eye on a
strong
orange
field on the forewing; this the southern or coastal type. The northern
or inland type is rarer in our area but shows up regularly; in this
form, the two forewing eyespots are surrounded by grey rather than
yellow. Given the distinction between these two 'models' and the
intergradation that occurs, it's not surprising that some early
butterfly observers split this single species into an array of species
including the Blue-eyed and Dull-eyed Greylings.
Black Swallowtail
Baltimore Checkerspot, we saw their caterpillars
munching Plantain earlier in the year.
Common Wood Nymph, northern form.
Common Wood Nymph, southern/coastal form,
photo by Otter Vispo
Route 21,
Hillsdale, first week of July
The
Grey Comma is a rarity in our area. So far as we know, this is the
first one recently seen in our county. John Piwowarksi found
it in
his garden, hanging out in the low vegetation along a trail
through his field of wild flowers. As explained in the entry below for
June 27th, the butterflies became rare with the eradication of the
gooseberries and currants (i.e., Ribes spp), the
food of the Grey Comma's
caterpillars, from
our landscape.
Notice
how the white comma mark on the underwing of this species narrows at
both ends, as opposed to the clubbed ends of the Eastern Comma (see
pictures below). The Grey Comma is also generally a relatively northern
species and hence perhaps a bit rarer in Columbia County as compared to
farther north.
Grey Comma, photo
by John Piwowarksi
Around
Hawthorne Valley Farm, Hillsdale, last week of June/first week of July
Some
of the old, early season regulars are still around. Great Spangled and
Meadow Fritillaries frequent. The Red Admiral and Little Glassywing are
both generally common butterflies, but have been less frequent
sightings so far on the Farm this year.
Red
Admiral.
Little Glassywing.
Round
Ball, Ancram, June 27th 2009
So,
forests aren't the places where butterflies are densest; furthermore,
few butterflies like to fly during raining days. We therefore proclaim
the fact that we even saw two butterfly species during our rainy-day
visit to forested Round Ball as a success!
In
an open field which we skirted, Cabbage Whites were toying with each
other. At the top of Round Ball, where there are almost savannah-like
conditions, we came across Eastern Commas, formerly known as Hop
Merchants. The food of their caterpillars includes nettles,
elms
and hops. These
are intriguing butterflies: they
are hibernators, the adults emerging to sip tree sap on warm days even
in early Spring; their color varies, with individuals emerging in early
summer having darker hindwings and those metamorphosing later in the
season (but possibly overwintering) showing light hindwings; and their
upper (bright orange) and lower (patchy grey/brown) wings are in stark
contrast, alternating between revealing flashes and bewildering
camouflage. Apparently the name "Hop Merchant" came from the fact that
farmers used to find their chrysalises on the hops. If the metallic
markings on the chrysalis shone golden, then hop prices would be good;
if the dots shone silver, then prices would be down.
The Comstocks in
their 1904 book, How to Know
the Butterflies,
provide an entertaining and accurate description of the flight of the
Eastern Comma,
"Its
flight is a miracle of erratic swiftness. It has much curiosity and a
disposition to meddle, evincing the same by dashing at anything it
happens to see moving; and it is always more than willing to join in
any fray. It starts up like magic from the path in front of us, the
gleam of its red wings making it seem like a bit of chain-lightning as
it zigzags upward over our heads, when we lose sight of it together;
but after we pass, if we take note, we will see that it has alighted
again on the selfsame spot where we first found it. It is not visible
unless its wings are open. The mottled browns on the under side of the
wings and their angular outline afford one of the prettiest
studies in proctective coloring which we know."
In
the 19th century, the Eastern Comma may have been no more common than
the Grey Comma, a similar but now rarely seen member of the same genus.
Wild currants were the primary food of Grey Comma. In the early 1900s,
wild currant eradication programs were initiated throughout the
Northeast in order to protect the White Pine timber from White Pine
Blister Rust. As an apparent result, Grey Comma have largely
disappeared from our landscape; we have never seen this species in the
County.
A brightly-colored Eastern Comma, showing the prominent (relatively
speaking) tilted white comma on the hindwing.
Having a bit of trouble finding the Eastern Comma in this photo? That's
the point.
A fresh June Eastern Comma with the dark hindwings (photo taken
elsewhere in the County).
An Eastern Comma, light-hindwing model. This picture was taken,
elsewhere in the County, in May.
This is almost surely an autumn-born adult which hibernated
and took wing on a warm Spring day.
Cannan,
NY, June 23rd 2009
Otter
(our son) and I headed up to a diverse old field behind our house on a
sunny afternoon. Quite a lot flying. Red-spotted Purple nectaring on
Dogwood flowers; a plethora of European Skippers (definitely seems to
be
the most common skipper at this time); a lone but beautiful Baltimore
Checkspot; a Silver-spotted Skipper (our largest local skipper); the
extravagent Great Spangled Fritillary; and the more modest,
bouncing-flying Common Ringlet and Little Wood Satyr.
RoJan Town
Park, Hillsdale, June 13th 2009
Generally nice
weather, albeit a bit hot, as we explored first the brushy meadow on
the south end of the Park and then circled around and made a brief
foray along the Creek.
We recorded Common
Ringlet (most
common in old field),
Cabbage White (over alfalfa
field), Clouded Sulphur (over alfalfa field), Orange Sulphur (over alfalfa field), Least Skipper (by creek and in
field), European Skippers (over alfalfa field), Pearl Crescent, Tiger
Swallowtail, Peck's Skipper (most common in old field), Painted Lady
(by creek), Black Swallowtail (adult and caterpillar), and possibly
Bronze Copper (by creek).
The most unusual
species in this group is the Bronze Copper, a butterfly generally
described as rare in the Northeast, but one which we have found
relatively frequently near wet areas on farmland in the County. However
the caterpillar of the Black Swallowtail was definitely the most
exotic; a large, green, striped creature, when perturbed it inflates a
pair of fleshy horns (scientifically termed osmetria) on its head and
waves these aggressively. They fill the air with a strong chemical
odor, reminiscent of the smell of Ground Beetles, if that helps. Also
known as the Parsley Worm, the Black Swallowtails caterpillar is
sometimes considered an agricultural pest.
Else, a couple of these species - the Cabbage White and European
Skipper - are introduced, but have probably been resident in North
America for at least the last 100 years or so. The Common Ringlet may
be the newest addition to our butterfly fauna. Although a native of
North America, it was generally a more northerly species. For reasons
unknown, it then began a southerly range expansion, only reaching our
area around 1990.
A Bronze Copper, photo by David Lewis.
At the end of our outing, David did some snooping
on his own and came back with this shot - the most unusual sighting of
the day! This is the fourth
farm setting in the County where we have recorded this species; we
always find it on the margins of wet areas.
Least Skipper, photo by John Piwowarski
European Skipper, photo by John Piwowarski
Baltimore Checkerspot caterpillar feeding on plantain, photo by John
Piwowarski
mating Cabbage Whites, photo by John Piwowarski
a Black Swallowtail caterpillar in the process of waving an osmetrium.
a Pearl Crescent.
RoJan
Town Park,
Hillsdale, May 30th 2009
Our inaugural
outing. After spending some time under the roof
discussing butterflies and the like, we headed down for a quick tour of
the wetlands along the RoJan. We found Baltimore Checkerspot
caterpillars munchng on plantain (a new food that they have apparently
begun to accept in recent years; their traditional diet was
turtlehead). Saw male and female Black Swallowtails, watched a Question
Mark laying eggs on nettle, and, aside from the ubiquitous
Cabbage White, registered Common Sootywing and Checkered Skipper.
Question Mark
male Black Swallowtail
.
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