Sinlahekin in May

I spent May 9th-11th at the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area, enjoying the beautiful weather and butterflies.  The list came to 31 species:
Erynnis icelus - Dreamy Duskywing
E. persius - Persius Duskywing
Pyrgus ruralis - Two-banded Checkered Skipper
Pholisora catullus - Common Sootywing
Papilio zelicaon - Anise Swallowtail
P. rutulus - Western Tiger Swallowtail
P. multicaudata - Two-Tailed Swallowtail
P. eurymedon - Pale Tiger Swallowtail
Pontia sisymbrii - Spring White (female)
Pieris rapae - Cabbage White
Euchloe ausonides - Large Marble
Anthocaris sara - Sara's Orangetip
Colias philodice - Clouded Sulphur
C. eurytheme - Orange Sulphur
Lycaena helloides - Purplish Copper
Callophrys spinetorum - Thicket Hairstreak
C. augustinus - Brown Elfin
C. eryphon - Western Pine Elfin
Celastrina echo - Echo Blue
Glaucopsyche piasus - Arrowhead Blue
G. lygdamus - Silvery Blue
Plebejus icarioides - Boisduval's Blue
Plebejus lupini - Lupine Blue (one fresh male)
Euphydryas anicia - Anicia Checkerspot
Polygonia satyrus - Satyr Anglewing
P. faunus - Green Anglewing
Nymphalis vaualbum - Compton Tortoiseshell (one very faded/tattered individual
being chased by an equally ratty Cloak)
N. antiopa - Mourning Cloak (lots everywhere, all faded)
Aglais milberti - Milbert's Tortoiseshell
Coenonympha tullia - Ochre Ringlet
Erebia epipsodea - Butler's Alpine

Bullsnake in the road

Anise Swallowtail Papilio zelicaon

Two-tailed Swallowtail Papilio multicaudata

Western Tiger Swallowtail Papilio rutulus

Silvery Blue Glaucopsyche lygdamus

Silvery Blue (Glaucopsyche lygdamus) egg on lupine flower buds

Arrowhead Blues Glaucopsyche piasus

Boisduval's Blues Plebejus icarioides

Echo Azure Celastrina echo

Echo Azure Celastrina echo (dark form)

Hatched egg (white "donut" on upper-right clump of Ceanothus buds) of Echo Azure

Brown Elfin Callophrys augustinus

Anicia Checkerspot Euphydryas anicia

Anicia Checkerspot Euphydryas anicia

Anicia Checkerspot Euphydryas anicia

Mourning Cloak (well worn, overwintered adult) Nymphalis antiopa

Bat emerging from the bunkhouse attic, through a hole in the flashing next to the chimney

Bats waiting to emerge from the bunkhouse attic!

Arrowleaf Balsamroot covering a hillside

Chokecherry blooming

Snowberry bushes, chokecherry, and other plants among the ponderosa pine trees

Lorquin's Admiral update

On May 14 (last Tuesday), exactly one week from when the larva pupated, this gorgeous Lorquin's Admiral emerged.  This is from the larva I found during my trip to the Deschutes River Canyon the previous week.

Deschutes River Canyon trip report

Yesterday, May 4, I spent the day exploring the Deschutes River Canyon in the recreational area north of Sherar's Bridge (north of Maupin and south of The Dalles) in Oregon.  I arrived around 10:30am and the temperature was already up to a warm 72F.  By the time I left around 3pm, the temperature had climbed to 84F, although a few places I stopped at had registered 88F.  It was very breezy all day with frequent gusts probably up to 30mph, which made photographing very many plants and butterflies rather difficult, but I still managed to get a nice species list. The highlight was finding a Lorquin's Admiral (Limenitis lorquini) caterpillar on coyote (aka sandbar) willow (Salix exigua).  Although I see many adult Lorquin's every year, this is the first larva I've seen of that species.  Also, unless I'm much mistaken, I think I saw a Monarch go zipping by in the wind. The glimpse I had was only a second or two, but it looked as big as a swallowtail and glinted orange in the sun, so I'm not sure what else it could have been.
Update 5/6/2013 - a local butterfly expert who studies monarch migration affirmed that monarchs have been seen moving northward much more rapidly this year than in recent history, so what I saw was very likely one of the first to arrive in this area this year.

Species list for the day:
Pholisora catallus - Common Sootywing x5
Hesperia juba - Juba Skipper x7
Papilio zelicaon - Anise Swallowtail x1
Papilio indra - Indra Swallowtail x3
Papilio rutulus - Western Tiger Swallowtail x1
Papilio multicaudata - Two-tailed Swallowtail x1
Colias sp. - unidentified sulphur (flew by in the wind)
Pontia beckerii - Becker's White x8
Plebejus melissa - Melissa Blue x1 slightly-worn male
Plebejus lupini/acmon - Lupine/Acmon Blue x9 (fresh males, all associated with Eriogonum compositum)
Plebejus icarioides - Boisduval's Blue x4 (all fresh males)
Nymphalis antiopa - Mourning Cloak x1
Limenitis lorquini - Lorquin's Admiral, 1 larva
Coenonympha tullia - Ochre Ringlet 10+
Danaus plexippus - Monarch x1

For reference, the Lorquin's Admiral caterpillar is a little over an inch long, and yes, it is supposed to look like a bird dropping!

Lorquin's Admiral Limenitis lorquini larva on Coyote Willow Salix exigua

Lorquin's Admiral Limenitis lorquini larva 

Lorquin's Admiral Limenitis lorquini larva 

Lorquin's Admiral Limenitis lorquini larva 

Lorquin's Admiral pre-pupal larva

Lorquin's Admiral pre-pupal larva

Indra Swallowtail Papilio indra on the shore of the Deschutes River north of Maupin, Oregon

Boisduval's Blue Plebejus icarioides (left) and Lupine/Acmon Blue P. lupini/acmon, both males

Lupine/Acmon Blue P. lupini/acmon male

Becker's White Pontia beckerii male

Juba Skipper Hesperia juba male

Ochre Ringlet Coenonympha tullia on lance-leaved stonecrop Sedum lanceolatum

Some kind of spider, hanging out with the tiger beetles

Twelve-spotted Tiger Beetle Cicindela doudecimguttata - the body of this little guy is only a half-inch long!

Northern buckwheat Eriogonum compositum

Lance-leaved stonecrop Sedum lanceolatum

Mourning Cloaks and Anglewings

Often the first butterfly seen each year in the Northwest, the Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa) overwinters as an adult and therefore comes out of hiding on warm days in late winter and early spring.  Adult Mourning Cloaks, or Camberwell Beauties as they are known in Europe, seek out sheltered spots in late summer under loose bark and in wood piles and old buildings.  When they emerge the following year, they seek out willow trees and lay masses of eggs on the leaves and in rings around small branches.  The larvae are black with many harmless spikes and a row of red spots down their back and are very easy to rear.  If you find the caterpillars, put them in a roomy cage supplied with fresh willow leaves every day or two.  Mature larvae are about two inches long, and will stop feeding and crawl around the cage looking for a spot to pupate.  The adult will emerge from the chrysalis a little over a week later.

Mourning Cloaks, like other Nymphalis spp., often have very noticeable crash-and-boom populations.  I remember frequently seeing Mourning Cloaks all over Kittitas County 12-15 years ago, and finding the caterpillars on the willows at home and at the local fishing pond.  For the past ten years I've rarely seen any until 2010, when they started popping up in twos and threes in various locations around the county.  They seem to be steadily increasing, and judging by the numerous sightings reported all over the state so far this year, it is looking like this will be another good year.  Check out the Butterflies of America photos of Mourning Cloak Immatures to see what the eggs, larvae, and pupae look like.

Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa (dorsal side)

Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa (ventral side)

Adults that have overwintered may be up 6-9 months old, resulting in faded colors and tattered wings, seen here.

Another slightly faded individual, here the wing edge blends in with the very white rocks on a road in the Sinlahekin.

Mourning Cloaks like to feed on sap, carrion and scat, a good habit to have when you emerge too early for flowers!

Green Anglewing Polygonia faunus, here one is sneaking up for a sip of what the Mourning Cloak is having.

Satyr Anglewing Polygonia satyrus, another species that overwinters as an adult.

This photo was taken in June, but is also of a Satyr Anglewing and shows how opportunistic they are... it is sipping a remnant of mineral-laden water on the weatherstripping of my car door!

Arrival of Spring

While I keep an eye on the succession of flowers bursting forth this time of year, I usually mark the first day of Spring as the day I see my first butterfly of the year, or the day a butterfly or moth I've been rearing emerges from its pupa after spending the winter on my porch.  This year, it was a Rosy Maple Moth, from some pupae I ordered from Bill Oehlke (his website is World's Largest Saturniidae Website).  I've wanted to see this species up close ever since I saw a picture of it in my first bug guide.  It lives in most of the states east of the Rockies and feeds on maple trees.  Although it sometimes is a pest of those trees, it is such a beautiful moth that I don't think I'd mind a few less maple trees!

Rosy Maple Moth Dryocampa rubicunda

Rosy Maple Moth Dryocampa rubicunda

Rosy Maple Moth Dryocampa rubicunda