The third annual Iredell County count was held on Sunday, 8/18. While it
was a bit hot, it had rained the previous day, skies were mostly clear, and
the four of us (Charlie Cameron, Pam & Doug DeNeve, and I, hosted by Dr and
Mrs Harberts) had an excellent day of butterflying. Indicative of the many
recently emerged adults, we saw a number of mated pairs; Orange Sulphur,
Pearl Crescent, Buckeye, Clouded Sulphur.
Late in the day Charlie and I found a new very long greenway and powerline
cut where we would have spent a few hours if we had been fresher. Next
year we will be sure to have a group count there.

Other than very high numbers of Cloudless Sulphur and Buckeye, most numbers
were similar to previous counts.

42 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
5 Spicebush Swallowtail
4 Cabbage White
6 Orange Sulphur
13 Sleepy Orange
25 Cloudless Sulphur - very high number
1 Gray Hairstreak
10 Eastern Tailed Blue
30 Summer Azure
1 American Snout
14 Variegated Fritillary
2 Great Spangled Fritillary
15 Silvery Checkerspot
86 Pearl Crescent
1 Question Mark
2 Eastern Comma - new county record
1 American Lady
1 Red Admiral
56 Common Buckeye - ten times higher than previous counts
30 Red Spotted Purple
15 Hackberry Emperor
2 Tawny Emperor
2 Northern Pearly-Eye
2 Gemmed Satyr
18 Carolina Satyr
1 Little Wood Satyr
11 Silver-Spotted Skipper
1 Hoary Edge
1 Common Sootywing
159 Clouded Skipper
5 Least Skipper
6 Fiery Skipper
4 Crossline Skipper
4 Little Glassywing
8 Sachem
12 Zabulon Skipper
1 Dun Skipper

37 species (vs 34 last year and 40 in 2000)
539 individuals (vs 503 last year and 1597 in 2000, when we had over
700 Clouded Skipper, 220 Sachem and 250 Carolina Satyr).

Jim Nottke
Pfafftown, NC 27040
nottke1@earthlink.net