It's been a long cold, damp winter so I have not posted anything in a while. Yes, there's been a few butterflies around but, not many, and nothing too interesting. Yesterday I ran over to the Yturria Brush unit of the Lower Rio Grande Valley NWR to see some of the butterflies Mike Rickard has reported lately. Things started slowly but eventually the sun popped out and drove temps up into the 80s. Butterlies out there tend to have more of a "western" flavor than in other parts of the RGV. I saw several Common Streaky-Skippers.
One of my main targets was Nysa Roadside-Skipper. None of them would pose with closed wings but you can see the checkered fringe on the fore wings.
Small and dark was the order of the day. This winter form Sickle-winged Skipper is pretty sharp.
Texas Powdered-Skipper is pretty much guaranteed at Yturria Brush and Santa Ana NWR.
Another specialty at Yturria Brush is the Desert Checkered-Skipper.
My first Lantana Scrub-Hairstreak of the year did not give me much of a photo opp. This was my only shot.
Mike had also reported a teneral baskettail dragonfly out there which he suspected was a Dot-winged Baskettail but identification from his photos was inconclusive. Baskettails are a difficult bunch to ID. Fortunately one "hung up" right in front of me and proved to be a Dot-winged Baskettail, a first record for the Rio Grande Valley. Thanks Mike!
Today it's about fifty degrees colder than yesterday so I'm glad I took advantage of yesterday's warm weather.
Giant Swallowtail 1
Southern Dogface 6
Large Orange Sulphur 1
Lyside Sulphur 20
Little Yellow 1
Sleepy Orange 2
Dainty Sulphur 10
Gray Hairstreak 1
Lantana Scrub-Hairstreak 1
Reakirt's Blue 3
American Snout 1
Vesta Crescent 30
Red Admiral 3
Texas Powdered-Skipper 5
Sickle-winged Skipper 1
Funereal Duskywing 2
White Checkered-Skipper 3
Desert Checkered-Skipper 2
Laviana White-Skipper 5
Common Streaky-Skipper 4
Common Sootywing 5
Fiery Skipper 1
Nysa Roadside-Skipper 4
Eufala Skipper 5
