National Butterfly Center, 4/27/26

While I was on my west Texas trip, the Valley got some rain and things have really greened out.  But the spring bird migration has been really good so butterflies have taken a back seat.  Which is fine because I didn't feel like battling the mosquitos.  So Monday I finally got over to the National Butterfly Center and it was alive with flowers and butterflies.  Granted most of them were Lyside Sulphurs and Reakirt's Blues.

On the big board in the visitors center, I saw Ornythion Swallowtail had been reported among the healthy for April 63 species.  So that was my target as I headed for the Mexican Orchid bush in the south garden.  It didn't take long.  But getting a photo of this amorous male was close too impossible as he chased the female Western Giant Swallowtails.  This was the best I could do.

Western Giant Swallowtail.

Nearby I saw a Gray Hairstreak on a blooming fiddlewood.  But the color and luster seemed off so I fired at a shot at what I expected would be a Marius Hairstreak.  Wrong again!  It was a sharp really fresh Red-lined Scrub Hairstreak.  I've never seen one in spring.

Lots of Clytie Ministreaks out.

Good to see a couple of Curve-winged Metalmarks out.

All of the big whites were Great Southern White.

Marine Blue is uncommon in the RGV.

And then there were these.  We've gotten Mexican Crescent happy in the last year.  Are these Mexican Crescents?  Or are they female Vesta?  That spot in the middle of the pale jagged median band has me concerned.  But I just went on Butterflies of American and solved my problem.  These are both males.  Male Vesta is distinctly two toned black and orange.  These are two male Mexican Crescents.  I feel better now.  I think.

Distracting me from the butterflies were the bees.  Lots of species out today.  I saw a dozen or more species.  These two little cuckoo bees will give me something to study.  Triepeolus?  Epeolus?  I've never seen one with a red scutellum.  For reference the flower head of the Bidens is about 5-6mm wide.  (PS:  The first one is Epeolus interruptus.  Oddly there are scattered records across the country but the only three from Texas are in the Valley with none in Mexico.  This was the first for Hidalgo County.  I'm still working on the second.)

And a few Nomada cuckoo bees.  Cuckoo bees are kleptoparasites meaning they lay their eggs in the nest of another species know as the host species.  The larvae consume the host larvae.

I should be out playing today but I wanted to get caught up on some of this stuff.  Also going to be hot with bad air quality today.  Up river Laredo had hazardous air quality yesterday thanks to a thermal inversion.

Gold-spotted Aguna at Progreso Lakes, 10/3/17

Well, I got started a little late in the yard today.  It was cloudy with a threat of rain.  But it didn't take long to pick up a new yard Butterfly, Olive-clouded Skipper.  I found a second better looking one a little later.

I saw some more butterflies after the sun popped out and spent some time birding. Then it got cloudy again so I checked out the purple Duranta wondering what might appear before the approaching rain.  I saw a spreadwing skipper with a white band and recognized it as an Aguna.  I was hoping for Emerald but will be happy with Gold-spotted, a very good yard butterfly.

Then the rains came and I noticed a Queen sitting on the coral bean.  'Cept it wasn't a Queen, It was our yard first Soldier, bringing our yard total to 83.

Other good stuff during the morning included a Double-dotted Skipper with it's long proboscis.

And a couple of Turk's-cap White-Skippers.

The Cassius Blues were a little dark today but they're not Marines.

A nice looking Southern Skipperling.

If I look hard enough I can just about always find a Mimosa Skipper in the yard.

A new butterfly for the yard yesterday was this ratty Brazilian Skipper.

And the day before that we added a not so rare Rounded Metalmark.

And the good butterfly season is just getting started.

Giant Swallowtail 1

• Cloudless Sulphur 8
• Large Orange Sulphur 4
• Little Yellow 4
• Mimosa Yellow 1
• Sleepy Orange 1
• Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 1
• Western Pygmy-Blue 1
• Cassius Blue 5
• Ceraunus Blue 5
• Gulf Fritillary 2
• Vesta Crescent 1
• Phaon Crescent 1
• Pearl Crescent 2
• Painted Lady 2
• White Peacock 5
• Tawny Emperor 1
• Queen 2
• Soldier 1
• Gold-spotted Aguna 1
• Brown Longtail 2
• Sickle-winged Skipper 4
• Mournful Duskywing 1
• White Checkered-Skipper 3
• Tropical Checkered-Skipper 8
• Laviana White-Skipper 4
• Turk's-cap White-Skipper 2
• Fawn-spotted Skipper 2
• Clouded Skipper 12
• Double-dotted Skipper 1
• Southern Skipperling 2
• Fiery Skipper 1
• Whirlabout 2
• Southern Broken-Dash 1
• Common Mellana 1
• Celia's Roadside-Skipper 2
• Eufala Skipper 1
• Olive-clouded Skipper 2

Santa Ana NWR, 6/27/16

I ran over to Santa Ana NWR this morning to check out the birds.  They turned out to be pretty non-noteworthy but the butterflies were smokin'.  Along the sidewalk past the old manager's residence area was this sharp Blue-eyed Sailor feeding on scat.  I think it's my new favorite butterfly.

Along the Willow Lakes Trail the frog fruit was blooming and loaded with butterflies.  Best was this rare East-Mexican White-Skipper.  Several have been seen this summer.

Nearby was a Turk's-cap White-Skipper.

Three Banded Peacocks were noteworthy.

Dozens of White Peacocks nectared on the frog fruit.

As did this Mimosa Skipper.  They were out in force today.

A sharp Gray-Hairstreak.

Turquoise antenna knobs a blazing, if Great Southern Whites could talk they would sound like Foghorn Leghorn.

Twenty five Pale-banded Crescents were my most ever for one day.

It's hard for this Rounded Metalmark to hide behind this frog fruit flower.

Well, while most of the butterflies were enjoying frog fruit, this White-striped Longtail exhibited a more exotic palate.  I guess it's an acquired taste.

First butterfly of the day was this poor Ruddy Daggerwing.

• Giant Swallowtail 5
• Great Southern White 5
• Large Orange Sulphur 15
• Lyside Sulphur 2
• Little Yellow 3
• Gray Hairstreak 1
• Dusky-blue Groundstreak 1
• Clytie Ministreak 1
• Ceraunus Blue 3
• Rounded Metalmark 5
• Red-bordered Pixie 1
• American Snout 5000
• Gulf Fritillary 3
• Zebra Heliconian 3
• Bordered Patch 100
• Crimson Patch 5
• Elada Crescent 1
• Texan Crescent 5
• Pale-banded Crescent 25
• Phaon Crescent 15
• White Peacock 70
• Banded Peacock 3
• Mexican Bluewing 3
• Blue-eyed Sailor 1
• Common Mestra 50
• Ruddy Daggerwing 1
• Tawny Emperor 3
• Carolina Satyr 1
• Queen 4
• White-striped Longtail 2
• Brown Longtail 10
• Mimosa Skipper 10
• Tropical Checkered-Skipper10
• Laviana White-Skipper 50
• Turk's-cap White-Skipper 4
• Julia's Skipper 1
• Fawn-spotted Skipper 3
• Clouded Skipper 8
• Whirlabout 3
• Celia's Roadside-Skipper 2
• Eufala Skipper 1
• East Mexican White-Skipper 1

Resasca de la Palma, 5/26/16

This morning I ran out to Resaca de la Palma State Park to see how the butterflies were doing.  I don't think I had been out  there since last fall's butterfly festival.  The butterfly garden was overgrown with little blooming and in need of trimming.  But the Ebony Trail was great.  Best butterfly was this Falcate Skipper on a blooming crucillo.  I think it's my first for Cameron County.

Also saw three Band-celled Sisters.  Glad to see them back after they were missing here last year.

Boisduval's Yellows were all over the place.

And good to see plenty of female Mexican Bluewings.

Here's an orangish Pale-banded Crescent.

There must have been a couple of hundred Clytie Ministreaks.

Never seen so many Mazan's Scallopwings.  The males are really black this summer.

Resaca de la Palma is a good place for Mimosa Skippers.

In the butterfly garden were several Rounded Metalmarks.

And a Red-bordered Metalmark.  I saw a Blue Metalmark but could not get a photos.

This female Cloudless Sulphur was really pumping out the pheromones.

Here's my list for the day.

• Black Swallowtail 1
• Giant Swallowtail 2
• Great Southern White 20
• Cloudless Sulphur 20
• Large Orange Sulphur 4
• Lyside Sulphur 10
• Boisduval's Yellow 25
• Little Yellow 3
• Dainty Sulphur 3
• Dusky-blue Groundstreak 3
• Clytie Ministreak 200
• Rounded Metalmark 3
• Red-bordered Metalmark 1
• Blue Metalmark 1
• American Snout 5
• Gulf Fritillary 1
• Zebra Heliconian 1
• Texan Crescent 4
• Pale-banded Crescent 2
• Phaon Crescent 2
• White Peacock 2
• Band-celled Sister 3
• Mexican Bluewing 8
• Tawny Emperor 3
• Carolina Satyr 2
• Brown Longtail 1
• Falcate Skipper 1
• Mimosa Skipper 1
• Mazans Scallopwing 20
• Sickle-winged Skipper 10
• White Checkered-Skipper 3
• Tropical Checkered-Skipper10
• Laviana White-Skipper 6
• Fawn-spotted Skipper 3
• Clouded Skipper 5
• Whirlabout 3
• Southern Broken-Dash 4
• Common Mellana 1
• Celia's Roadside-Skipper 2
• Eufala Skipper 2