Folks:
The new western Brunswick County, NC, count was held Saturday, Aug. 25.
The drought in the Southeast – not so much in the local area – hurt us,
as the volume of northbound butterflies from FL, GA, and/or SC was
minimal. The flow of such species is always greater later in the season
– September to October anyway, but it was slim pickin’s today. No
Long-tailed Skipper, one Ocola, no Little Yellow, etc. Also hurting was
simply the lack of knowledge of the count circle other than a few golf
courses/developments with plantings, a few sites along the coast, etc.
But, that happens with any new count – so a lot was trial and error.
Thanks to Jeff Pippen, Will Cook, Ted Wilcox, John Ennis, and John Dole
for helping out on a hot and sticky day. Here’s the list:
Black Swallowtail 4
E. Tiger Swallowtail 2
Spicebush Swallowtail 5
Palamedes Swallowtail 21
Cloudless Sulphur 220
Sleepy Orange 28
Great Purple Hairstreak 1
Gray Hairstreak 3
Red-banded Hairstreak 14
E. Tailed-Blue 4
Gulf Fritillary 19
Variegated Fritillary 16
Pearl Crescent 9
Question Mark 1
American Lady 1
Painted Lady 1
Red Admiral 4
Common Buckeye 38
Viceroy 20
Carolina Satyr 2
Monarch 22
Silver-spotted Skipper 3
CONFUSED CLOUDYWING 1 Somewhat worn; photos taken
Horace’s Duskywing 5
Zarucco Duskywing 5
Clouded Skipper 2 Terribly low
Least Skipper 2
Fiery Skipper 55
Whirlabout 3
Southern Broken-Dash 4
Byssus Skipper 3
Dun Skipper 1
Twin-spot Skipper 1
Salt Marsh Skipper 9
Ocola Skipper 1 Bad sign; in a good year would be common by now
Total: 35 species.
This count won’t be repeated next year, but maybe in two years. I plan
to try a new circle to hit Fort Fisher, Carolina Beach, Southport, and
Boiling Spring Lakes. And, I likely will try these counts a week later,
even if it means Labor Day weekend.
Harry LeGrand
--
Harry LeGrand
NC Natural Heritage Program
DENR Office of Conservation and Community Affairs
1601 MSC
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
(919) 715-8697 (work)
e-mail: harry.legrand@ncmail.net
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