The Daily Bucket is a place to catch your casual observations of the natural world and turn them into a valuable resource. Whether it's the first flowers of spring or that odd bug in your basement, don't be afraid to toss your thoughts into the bucket. Check here for a more complete description.
May 20-26
Omaha, Nebraska
Backyard butterfly weekly list. Number indicates the number of days sighted. Names in bold represent new sightings for the year.
Butterflies:
Monarch(1)
Red Admiral(1)
American Snout(1)
Comma(1)
Cabbage White(1)
Gray Hairstreak(1)
Skippers:
Silver-spotted(2)
Moths:
White-lined Sphinx(1)
It was a busy week and there was not a lot of time for Butterfly observation. All of my recordings came from Sunday and Saturday. The big sighting for the week was the American Snout(Libytheana carinenta, pictured left). This was the first Snout I have seen in my yard and only the second I have ever seen. The previous sighting was in a heavily wooded area where you'd expect an American Snout to be more at home. Of course, the American Snout is easily recognized by its elongated snout which is formed from its labial palps. Sadly, this Snout would not expose much of the underside of it's forewing, which shows orange, black, and white, or the beautifully patterned topside of its wings.
Saturday I recorded my second Gray Hairstreak(Strymon melinus, pictured right) of the year, which is as many as I recorded last year, from July on. So far, it has been a great year for butterflies, with a number of new species being recorded. That hasn't been the case for skippers. Silver-spotted skippers seem to be increasing in numbers, but I haven't seen a single Grass Skipper. Perhaps it is the flowers I have in bloom as they seem to have preferred the Zinnias over everything else last year.
The Saturday before last I had seen my first White-lined Sphinx moth in two years. This past Sunday I saw my second and third. While bundling some brush a mating pair of the moths(pictured above the squiggle)fell out onto the lawn. They fluttered their wings a bit but they weren't going anywhere, so I grabbed my camera and took some pics. They even let me reposition them for better shots. When I was done, I scooped them up and placed them in an out of the way spot where they wouldn't get stepped on and where the birds were less likely to find them.
So, what are you seeing in your area?