Recent sightings

A quick early afternoon visit to Woodpecker Swamp to check on water levels and grass skippers. Mulberry Wings are out and about and a couple of Black Dashes. I previously have only seen individual Striped Hairstreaks, so having three at once was quite exciting (cell phone photo)! A few other sightings from the front gardens of the building. One unided duskywing that was too fast.

milkweed finally reached acceptable ripeness

Silver spotted skipper

From Grau Rd to Crigger Rd north to border with Deckertown Tpke, checked twice between 1400 & 1830 hrs

530-630pm
quick late visit. Did not cover many trails or ponds. Surprised to get hairstreaks and did not see much blooming milkweed

330-500pm
Scout Trail to the Gorge and view of falls…only bflies were arriving and leaving

115-245pm
lots of black cohosh on blue trail with Azure not feeding but scoping out mid leaves and top nodules. Very cooperative pics.

9-11am
3 mile loop trail with the first .5 miles strenous. wood frogs

Several sulfur sp. also present

Sunny, about 86F. Narrow-leafed Mountain-mint in bloom, attracting most of the skippers.

American Coppers everywhere. Most were nectaring at Yarrow of all plants, but some were on Spotted Knapweed and Daisy Fleabane. The few Orange Milkweeds in bloom were covered with coppers (see photo). No Arogos Skippers and no Coral Hairstreaks. 11:00-12:45, hot and sunny.

Overcast with some on and off sun. There still hasn't been any activity with fruit, bait, nectar, puddles/mud (and now I have added scat)

9:30-12:00, Cloudy, low 80’s, very humid.
Extensive nectar sources but apparently nobody told the butterflies. Bergmot and orange milkweed in full bloom. Common milkweed well past peak. Dogbane (with evidence of much deer browse) just past peak. A bit of mountain mint and knapweed here and there.

Cloudy. Mostly ended up being a find the carex day. Only Cabbage whites flying. Everything else was kicked up in the grass. I've been looking for 3 years here for Dion, Mulberry Wing and Black Dash skippers. Finally some success. I need a carex primer. Great Piece Meadows is over 7,000 acres with a lot of interesting habitat.
[mdoerator]: Dion Skipper is new county record for our database.

This is a different site from the one we reported from yesterday. We rescued the Walnut Sphinx (moths rule) from the grasp of a wasp. To show its gratitude it crawled up my pants. I watched the Delaware Skipper lay an egg on a leaf of an unidentified grass.

We have been checking this area for the past few seasons. Unfortunately, the town recently mowed. The fields have a variety of clover, composites and some milkweed which was past its prime now.

no balt checkerspots yet at Jager. sat in car for 20 min thunderstorm. all Am Coppers fresh. Tawny emp and North Pearly eyed at Historic house site

blooming highbush blueberries….many Edwards fighting.

hot and humid. Very worn Balt Checkerspot but fresh hairstreak. sootywing seen by c wyluda

We recorded 51 metalmarks at this site but others conducting a more rigorous survey at the same time recorded more than 100! Many of the metalmarks were seen in the shade and not nectaring.

I took a 45 minute stroll around the garden leading up to 12 noon. I had a fresh pair of Pearl Crescents in the composite area. Early this morning I spotted 2 mature Silver-spotted Caterpillars on the porch Wisteria and at least dozen or so tiny little folds between the Black Locust and the Hog Peanut. They have been very busy.

2-4PM 85° Walk of fields at Teetertown and a short stop at Crystal Springs around the car park. A surprising amount of Milkweed at both locations. A few skippers unidentified but generally not many about. Broad Winged at Crystal Springs

9:30 am to 3:45 pm. About 5-6 miles of trails covered. Hot and sunny throughout the day. A very interesting day with noticeable absences, but some high counts and a new species for the park for me (Hackberry Emperor). Appalachian Browns were throughout the wetter areas park, but most dense around Woodpecker Swamp. No Mulberry Wing yet. 26 species total and 348 individuals. One flyby dark swallowtail. Poor cell phone photo of the Hackberry Emperor that highlighted the day .

Orange milkweed in bloom.

5:30-7:20 pm sun and clouds. Lots of Dogbane and Common Milkweed in bloom. Tons of pollinators including bees, flies, and wasps filled the field.

2:30-3:30 very warm, plantings around the Nature Center (closed) and an adjacent field. Orange milkweed in full bloom; dog bane starting, fields dry except for gray water drainage areas.

Mostly sunny and warm
82 degrees with a light breeze

The small patches of flowers are next to a fen just down the road from our house. Most years the road crew has mowed the thistle patch by now.

Large preserve but with very limited access.

11:00-12:30 sunny, warm, and humid

My first time here and it was awesome! Edward's Hairstreaks were found on the path leading up the the pavilion and the southwestern corner of the pavilion in the oaks. 5 is an exact count.

late morning to early afternoon visit. Hot and sunny. The Milkweed patch along the dirt road had the most Banded Hairstreaks I have personally seen. 15 is an exact count. Seems like another good flight of Baltimore Checkerspot. It was difficult to get an accurate count, because they were so active (dogfighting each other). 8 is conservative as I think it could have been as high as 10. Several unided sulphurs and a dark swallowtail.

2-3:30 PM, about 90 F. Sun at first, clouds by 3:30.

11:15am-1:30pm, mostly sunny, 84°F

I walked the entire property from west to east even crossing over the property line for a bit to look around the neighbors open driveway going up ridge. Still only a single Great Spangled Fritillary visiting the milkweed. The variety and numbers are still much lower than usual for late June/early July. Two Cabbage Whites were observed ovipositing of what is left of the various Mustard/Cress which is being devoured by various moth caterpillars. There has been a Little Wood Satyr eruption over the past few days. It seems too early for a second brood here. Delayed hatch perhaps? The number includes one that I found deceased down at the road.

dry and needs water here…lupines gone, mostly dogbane but not peaking

88-90f and humid. Dry in most parts.

Walked 1/2 of Block Road towards Buttermilk Falls, Drove about 1/2 mile North of Tilman Rd.
Had two female Baltimore Checkerspot laying eggs on Turtle Head.

2:05-3:30, sunny, humid, 84-87º.

10:15-11:30, cloudy, muggy, 83º. We have not indicated the precise location of these sightings because 2 of the species are rare and are susceptible to collectors.

The Banded Hairstreaks were nectaring at small clumps of C. Milkweed very near Black Walnuts with no oaks in sight, so they may be using the walnut as a host plant.

12:00pm-3:30pm, sunny then clouding up and some sprinkles, 82°F

Sunny, humid, 80-90 F. Butterflies (except satyrs) mostly on milkweed, but milkweed very sparse. Some Appalachian Browns and Little Glassywings getting worn. Ticks abundant.

Late morning and early afternoon excursion mostly stopping at roadside patches of Indian Hemp and Common Milkweed. Nothing in the clearing around the Sunrise Mtn. shelter—meaning no Edwards' and no Coral hairstreaks!

25 species on the day including other incidental observations.

11:00 to 11:45 and 12:30 to 3:00. Mostly sunny; upper 80s to ca. 90°. Most Metalmarks looked very fresh; I found none on my last visit.

10:30AM-Noon; Sunny; High 70s; Light breeze.

9:30-10:30, Upper 70’s, sunny
This is a mostly stagnant, man made pond in a development about a mile from my house. Not a great butterfly area but usually good for a dozen or so species. Milkweed has entered Phase 2, fully open for outdoor dining, however butterflies still sheltering in place. No grass skippers observed - not sure if that is because of low butterfly numbers this year or because all the vegetation where I mostly see them has been recently cut to the ground by the township.

very late- 5:30-7:30 stroll… menacing thunder over the ridge, but sunny , warm and dry throughout. Milkweed blooming but mostly being used by bees. Monarda in the parking lot.
Not sure if the App Brown is the same on from about 2 weeks ago- it now has a chunk taken out of one wing.

9:00am-1:40pm, mostly sunny, 79°F
photos from Steve Glynn

FOY yard monarch.

Most years going back to early 90s we could find 20 species in our yard in early July.

2:40-4:00 mostly sunny and around 80
Both Coral Hairstreaks were avidly taking nectaring at Indian Hemp (Apocynum cannabinum).
Lots of Indian Hemp and Common Milkweed in good bloom but overall few butterflies. Great Spangled Fritillaries, Monarchs, sulphurs, and hairstreaks especially poor.

One observer, 2:30 to 3:30 PM, partly cloudy, warm.

swamp milk weed blooming but no butterflies in my yard, BTW

Late afternoon check of this field across from Double S Smoke House. A few years ago it was jumping with Baltimore Checkerspots and today gave me a singleton, but mint fresh.

Walked the field and the Bronze Copper was a happy surprise.

Overcast and spitting for most of my 12:15-12:50 visit

Brief mid-morning visit and worked some of the wetter areas along Long Hill Road.

Early morning stop. Walked the pipeline area, but was dismayed that the gas company is working in the area and has placed heavy matting over a major portion of the lower area for vehicle driving upon. This matting covers the wet seep area that so many things come into for water and minerals.