Butterfly sightings for September 2014

The Asters and Goldenrod were popular today, attracting little clouds of Eastern Tailed-Blues and one interesting lime green and black striped beetle.

Township of Tomahawk, Camp Ave. - eight mile stretch, 1:10 -3:10 Pm 72 degrees, calm, mostly cloudy with the sun trying to peek through! Thirty-nine sightings for seven species.

4:30 -5:30 Pm: 78 degrees, sunny, fluffy clouds & gusty winds. Except for goldenrods & asters not much in bloom! Thirty sightings for six different species

Every kind of weather today. Started out overcast and humid, 70F, then it rained for a couple of hours, and finally it turned sunny, breezy and about 80F. Saw the lightest Question Mark I've ever observed. Besides butterflies: a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth, and many lovely red Meadowhawks.

I just did a count on Hilda's Corner and James Road. Monarchs everywhere nectaring on Goldenrod. My count for them is very conservative.

This individual seems very light compared to those on this site and in books.

I went here to pick some elderberries that I didn't pick last week because they weren't ripe. The birds beat me to them! I was most surprised by the the fresh Purplish Copper males. 3:30-4:00.

This was a drive of a few miles around the Lamb's Creek area. Most of the Monarchs were in a nearby clover field. In just a quick binocular scan of the field, I counted over 45. All fresh and beautiful!

2:00pm, sunny, low 80s. There was a huge bush with orange flowers where the 7 monarchs spent all of their time. A hummingbird joined them at one point.

Beautiful sunny mild morning, but I spent too much of it pulling Burdock instead of looking for birds and butterflies.

Sunny, very warm and humid. The butterflies looked very fresh except for some of the Pearl Crescents, which were very faded. Plenty of dragonflies, bees and soldier beetles! Also found 2 early instar Eastern Tiger Swallowtail caterpillars. One on a White Ash sapling, the other on Wild Black Cherry.

Seventy-five degrees, gusty winds, clouds roll through all day long, potential storms threaten!
1:00 - 3:30 Pm, Forty-four sightings for eight different species

In our school's tiny prarie "arboretum". A full grown monarch caterpillar was also found.

Mostly sunny, slight wind, 70's. Saw 3 monarchs flying overhead in a southwesterly direction earlier in the day. Later saw 3 more male monarchs nectaring mostly on the stiff goldenrod. Saw my FOY common buckeye. The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail was a worn, dark form female. Also saw some sort of beetle eating the flowers of false sunflower.

Seventy-four degrees, Sunny virtually no clouds & mild winds: 10:30 Am - 12:30 Pm. Eighty-four sightings for eight different species!

With 3 other spotters.

2.6 miles, 57 - 70 F, 8:03 - 10:42, N wind 4 - 7, sunny. Incidental while birding

This is only the second Gray Hairstreak I've seen this year; the first was quite worn.

2:15 Pm - 4:40 Pm, Cloud cover is heavier, with sun peeking through occasionally, gusty winds and seventy-two degrees. Sixty-four sightings for eleven different species

A triple Polygonia day! Also, about 1,000+ yellow jackets, bald-faces hornets, and paper wasps on the rotten apples.

Clear day, light breeze, mid-70s. Goldenrod, Joe Pye Weed, Boneset, Compass Plant, Thistles in bloom. Many of the butterflies seemed to prefer the Thistles. There were two Giant Swallowtails caterpillars together on a Prickly Ash shrub.

Saw my first Cinnabar-Red Chanterelles. Thanks to Fern Springs for sending my photos to an expert for ID.
15 of the 18 Monarchs were in the gardens at the entrance.

Casual observations on a beautiful sunny and mild afternoon.

Sunny and beautiful but not enough birds or butterflies.

I finally saw a Peck's Skipper at the farm! (New on your map for Buffalo County) I've been seeing them in the twin cities, but this is the first one I've seen here.

I have seen either this butterfly or another giant swallowtail throughout the summer feeding on my phlox and zinnias. This one appears to have damage to its lower wings.

All the Monarchs were along the Kewaunee Marshland Walk.

The butterflies were observed as I gathered prairie seeds for Dane County Parks.

Upper 70's, breezy and mostly cloudy. The fall colors are beginning to show.

A sunny, not very humid afternoon, mid-70's temperature. Seen in a relatively shady area. No others seen.

Not much nectaring on the flowers. Lots of Bronzed Tiger Beetles on the beach and I was surprised to find a female Pelecinid Wasp. The wasp looked like it was having problems as it was down by the water, but I nudged it after taking lots of photos and it just flew away.

I hiked only on the trail along the lake.

Mostly sunny and warm. The monarchs were just passing by.

Good weather, fair numbers.

Late afternoon, mostly sunny and warm, then clouded over. The monarchs were nectaring on New England aster and Stiff goldenrod. The dragonflies were very active, mostly Black saddlebags.

82° Sunny change to Cloudy. Red Spotted Purple and E. Comma were on the stems of honeysuckle in marsh. We saw 25+ Whites were on Cnty M while driving. Giants were headed West like the migrating Monarchs. We had 13 Monarchs on the zinnia's at one time on the 7th.

I have 3 5th instar Black Swallow Cats enjoying the fennel in my garden.

Cloudy, windy, 50 degrees. One hardy butterfly flying around and nectaring on Black Mustard.

All Monarchs seen were high flying migrants observed while watching birds. Counted carefully, but definitely an undercount.

There were lots of asters around, but I only saw one butterfly nectaring on an aster, and then just briefly. It was nice to see monarchs flying in all different parts of the park.

Finally sunshine and warmer after a couple days of cold, rainy weather. The monarchs were nectaring mostly on New England Aster. Also found a White-lined sphinx moth caterpillar, Hermit Sphinx caterpillar and several Woolly Bears!

2-4:30 Not many butterflies. Lots of colorful interesting mushrooms.

It was a cooler than normal, but beautiful sunny September day. Saw at least 10 Monarchs. Most seemed to be traveling west along the road near the lake. They were casually floating down periodically for rest and nectar. Also, had a Red Admiral land on my leg as I was photographing various pollinators on Snakeroot plants.

A wondrous morning at the the gardens......especially the herb garden! Counted around 15 Monarchs!

Sunday 12 Noon to 2:00 Pm, 64 degrees, sunny with clouds passing through, gusty winds! Thirty-one sightings for ten different species & three unknown caterpillars!

Monarchs common.. Great Spangled Frit on red clover...female.

100's of Monarchs on the grassland trail

High temp today 59 degrees. The Monarchs were high and headed Southwest.

The Silver-spotted Skipper caterpillar was found underneath some thorny plant, but now happily feeding on Wisteria.

Clover seemed to be the nectar source of choice today. There were lots of asters around, but the butterflies seemed to be ignoring them.

Sunny, 61 degrees with slight NW wind. The monarchs were flying low and southbound along Rolfs Ave.

Over the years this private residence has been known to be a over night roosting area for Fall migrating Monarchs. However no large layovers have occurred since 2009. One 15 minute observation window of the tree line revealed 65 Monarchs, Later a 45 minute watch 137 monarchs counted up in the sky along the treeline. We recorded a total of 84 Monarchs on the 16 acre property grounds within another half hour! Total sightings including other butterfly species was 324 for a six hour day including nine different species.
It is obvious that Darner Dragonflies & Ruby-throated hummingbirds are also migrating at this time!

A lot of Eastern Commas Today

From Hwy 35 to County A. 1-2:30 pm. Sunny, low 60s.

High temp 70 degrees. Lots of asters and goldenrod in bloom along with the first Bottle gentian I've spotted this year.

Much activity today on the New England asters with Monarchs, Sulfurs, honey and bumble bees!

When I exited onto Capitol Drive off of 43, I saw a monarch above as I was driving then another and another and multiple others as I kept driving East. It was difficult to concentrate on driving. When I sat down to paint in downtown Shorewood at a house, as part of their annual plein air competition, I continued to see monarchs. They even settled on some of the sedums so I included them in my painting. It was a wondrous day.

Monarchs on the move today! Sunny and mild. Lots of prairie flowers in bloom.

The buckeye was nectaring on marigolds in our vegetable garden

The Monarchs I saw were all males and nectaring on New England Asters along with numerous bees and wasps. Also noted several Common Green Darners flying about.

Sunny with the temps near 70 in the afternoon.

75 degrees and sunny. Quite a bit of fall colors. Several Monarchs. Many juvenile Common Green Darners, mosaic darners and Autumn Meadowhawks.

Barely 70 degrees today.

Clear sunny day, mild winds, some clouds in the sky. Fourteen sightings for four species!

Especially enjoyed seeing the Eastern comma, since it's a butterfly I don't see that often.

Lots of fiery skippers here today. The first that I've seen this year.

A beautiful but slightly windy day. Most butterflies seen on Jimmy Carter Rd.

This was a morning visit. Conditions were perfect: sunny, 60+ degrees, and not too windy. There were many Eastern Buck Moths flying this morning. I was fortunate to have one land for a photo. One of my photos shows a VERY worn fritillary which lacks most of its wing scales and wing edge. Looks like a Meadow Frit to me. The brave thing was still flying. Oddest sighting was an American Copper courting, then mating with a female Purplish Copper! Photos attached!

1:30-2:15 pm

First of year (for me at least) Little Yellow.

9-10am, Sunny and warm. Lots of Monarchs; I counted 14 on one large Aster.

Pleasant day

Sunny, low 70s, 3:00-5:00pm

On the grassy path between Frautshi Point and Biocore Prairie

Saw 1 Common Buckeye nectaring on white clover near our vegetable garden

Sunny clear skies, calm Am , mild winds Pm, reaching 72 degrees. 10:00 Am - 4:00 Pm. Not the Monarch migrating frenzy we experienced last week! Still a lot of other butterfly species activity. Seventy-seven sightings for eleven species. Hummingbird females now six weeks after the males have left are finally leaving only two of seven still on site this week!

Private residence with prairie remnant. Sunny day with passing clouds. Seventy Two degrees, Am calm, Pm mild winds. 10:00 Am - 4:00 Pm. One Hundred Nineteen sightings for Eleven species.

Flying through the garden

While driving along the base of the Hogback on the east side pondering management ideas I spotted a female regal. I hopped out for a closer look and she first appeared to be laying eggs but as I followed her between short flights and rests I could see she was just basking to warm up in the mid morning hours.

79° Sunny. Have been waiting all year for a Dainty. Only saw 1 last year on Oct 5th. Viceroy flew in front of me into the barn, then stopped for a good look on the sill plate.
[Editor's note: Dainty Sulphur is the first one reported this year in Wisconsin! — Mike]

3:45-4:39 pm. Just Scott surveying today. Most of the butterflies were in the barrens west of Hastings Road. On Sept. 27 Ann and I found 9 American Coppers in just 10 minutes here.

Sunny, clear, No winds seventy-eight degrees. Twenty-nine sightings for Nine different species.
Lots of praying mantis in the area, and photo of a mating pair!

This trip was to see the Splendid Tiger Beetle. It has been over 8 years since I last saw it so I was due! Thanks to Cynthia Bridge for reminding me how cool they are. I only saw two and they were not really very cooperative for photos, but I was able to watch them for quite a while with binoculars.

Sighted outside my window at work in southeast Kenosha, WI.

The lady was quite aggressive about trying to chase away the monarch.

11:06 am to 3:45 pm, 70-78 degrees F, 100% sunshine, wind south 3-8 mph. We walked 5 miles in the grassland and 1 mile of roadsides. Purplish Coppers are having a strong 3rd brood here. Survey coverage was slightly greater than on August 3 when we had 10% more Purplish Coppers than today. 185 of the Purplish Coppers were in grasslands bordering Archer Road, and 12 were seen in the mowed edge of Archer Road in the first 1/2 mile west of County W. We found at least 15 Purplish Coppers in all seven transects off-road bordering Archer. Most coppers were in good wing condition. The largest concentration of coppers was in the first quarter mile west of County W, 250 meters north of Archer road. An easy to find (easier walking) concentration was barely >1/4 mile west of Cty W, a little south of Archer number. Coppers were nectaring on several species of white asters. We saw 9 Purplish Coppers on one clump of asters about 0.75-0.8 miles west of County W, 10 meters north of Archer Road. We also readily found Purplish Coppers nectaring on asters and Hoary Alyssum in mowed roadsides on both sides of County W just north of the east-west ditch that borders Apache Road.

Not a lot flying here despite plenty of nectar sources.

There is always lots of asters in bloom here in late September and early October and it always pays to make a stop. 4-5:00.

Tried again to use rotten apple bait for Compton Tortoiseshell, no success.

Used rotten apples to try to bait Compton Tortoiseshells, none seen.

The Pearl Crescents and Great Spangled Fritillaries were very worn. Also saw 4 other worn butterflies that I couldn't identify for sure--maybe ladies? Except for 2 of the Orange Sulphurs the butterflies seemed to be ignoring the asters. In other years asters seem to be a big hit with butterflies but this year it seems not so much.

12 Splendid Tiger Beetles seen, also one walkingstick and one Darapsa caterpillar.

81° Sunny. Found the 1st Purplish Copper on the North side of Owens hill. Saw 2 Prairie Chickens there. The rest of the PCs were along W between Apache and Archer roads & Apache road. Heath Asters! W has hundreds of Wooly Bears.

I was surprised to see so many Monarchs still here. They were by far the dominant butterfly at the nature center today. Warm temperatures (80F), light breeze at 3 p.m. Plenty of nectar sources still, including various Asters. There were many more butterflies than my count, but I saw at least this many as I was taking photos of late-blooming plants.

Seen on a Madison Audubon bird walk. The Azure was a bit of a surprise. I'm seeing single Monarchs heading south nearly everywhere I go lately.

We looked for Purplish Coppers because of Jim Otto's September 2013 sightings of that species on more than one date here. 9:40-10:43 am, 66-71 degrees F, 100% sunshine, wind west 0-2 mph. The Purplish Copper was nearly at the east end of the curve in former Harvey Road after it turned from going north to going east. Bronze Coppers were on this "road" as well as on the trails east and north of the parking lot, and most were nectaring on white asters.

Brief stop where Cascade mtn Road meets the I-39 northbound on-ramp.

Two Compton Tortoiseshells were apparently looking for a hibernating spot in the eves of the cabin. Lotsa flying about and exploring any nook or cranny. Lovely butterfly!

82 degrees & Sunny. Took Doreen back so she could see the Purplish & Owens Hill before heading to Minocqua to see the fall colors. We were there only 15 minutes. Had to laugh, didn't know Swengel's had been up there on the 26th.

1.0 mile, 14:40 - 15:36

A couple of sightings in my yard. The bug appears to be a Western Conifer Seed Bug - Leptoglossus occidentalis.

82 degrees & Sunny. Took Doreen for a quick ride to check the trail cam and asters in the marsh. Dainty was along the soybean field across the RR tracks.

Sunny, a few passing clouds, mild winds and seventy-eight degrees. 3:30 - 5:00 Pm. Sixteen sightings for seven species. At the end of my butterfly adventure, my last stop on the rustic road for the day, I found a mating pair of Northern Walkingsticks, Wow!- another photo moment!

Sunny clear skies, calm, no wind! Eighty degrees, from 12:30 - 3:00 Pm. Seventeen sightings for Seven species. Just when I was ready to leave the refuge, a pair of Whooping Cranes flew into the wetland adjacent to the fire lane I was on! What a great photo moment -

BST hilltopping out of camera range. A surprising paucity of BFs for an hour's walk on a warm sunny midday.

I was at the park looking for birds and butterflies from 9am to 12:30pm. The temperature reached 80F, but that was before the cold from went through later this afternoon.

Sunny nearly clear skies, gusty winds, and 72 degrees. Fifteen sightings for fives species. Two types of Mantids both Chinese & Praying on farm.

Cloudy, with strong winds off Lake Michigan making air very damp and cool! 50 degrees, only a few moments in morning when the sun peeked through the clouds. 10 Am -12:30 Pm Six sightings for three species and a Brown Hooded Owlet caterpillar.
(Thanks to Peter Sveiks for the ID on this moth caterpillar. This is a species that was raised by Janice Stieffel from Door County and posted on bugguide here: http://bugguide.net/node/view/85053 ; Mike Reese)