Thursday, September 3, 2015

Mormon Metalmarks

It's that time of year again! If you happen to be out and about in central and eastern Washington and Oregon this Labor Day weekend, keep an eye out for these little jewels nectaring on rabbitbrush and other late-blooming flowers.  They only appear for about two weeks this time of year, and are our only representative of the metalmark group, Riodininae, a mostly southern-US and tropical group of butterflies.
Mormon Metalmark - Apodemia mormo on rabbitbrush at Ellensburg Viewpoint, I-82 south of Ellensburg

Mormon Metalmark & Woodland Skipper on rabbitbrush at Ellensburg Viewpoint, I-82 south of Ellensburg