#299: Butterflies, Part Two
Mostly swallowtails, and a pair of mystery moths
It’s been an odd butterfly year, at least in my little corner of the world. With the exception of an unusually large number of Sandia hairstreaks in May, I’ve seen very few butterflies along my regular walk through the Sandia foothills.
I have, however, seen and photographed many more tiger swallowtails — outside the foothills, at least — than in most years.
One of the few butterflies I’ve seen in the foothills was the variegated fritillary above. I’m including it here because I’m tickled by its juxtaposition with the first photo showing a yellow butterfly nectaring on orange flowers, while this one shows an orange butterfly on yellow flowers.
Not only that, both flowers are actually the same species, western wallflower. I don’t understand why, but western wallflowers are routinely yellow at lower elevations, while they’re orange-red at higher altitudes.
If you look closely at the photo above, you might notice a stray set of wings in the upper left. They belong to what, for now, I’m thinking of as a mystery moth.1 I managed to get a clearer shot of the unnamed critters on another nearby iris (below).
I took the tram up to Sandia Peak a few weeks ago and just about the first thing I saw upon my arrival at the top were late-blooming locust trees. There were several tiger swallowtails busily flying around them, each apparently trying to get the “best” nectar.
I was totally blown away by all the puddling swallowtails a friend and I (almost literally) ran into in the Pecos a few weeks ago.2 There were so many we couldn’t count them all.
I mentioned earlier how few butterflies I’ve seen in the foothills. Painted ladies, in particular, seem to be completely missing in action this year. They’re generally ubiquitous, which makes their current absence all the more unsettling.3
Last week I was up in the Sandia mountains when I thought I spotted a painted lady on bee balm. “Finally!” I thought, and started shooting photos. But after taking a few, I realized, “Oh no, this isn’t a painted lady after all.” I actually felt a bit of disappointment even though it was a rare opportunity to see and photograph an American lady.
Last but not least …
A rather shaky video of the swallowtails while they were puddling in the Pecos, with a birdsong background I recorded in the Sandias.
iNaturalist suggested they’re Litocala moths; I don’t think so (but I’m no expert). Butterflies and Moths of North America suggested Eutricopis nexilis and I’m skeptical of that ID as well. So I’m sticking with mystery moths for now, which is at least alliterative.
Butterfly puddling usually involves mud, manure and/or standing water, along with a bunch of butterflies. It’s always fascinating to see so many butterflies in one place.
There have even been several occasions throughout the years when each footstep I’ve taken in the foothills has sent up a veritable cloud of painted ladies.
What a wonderful, peaceful video; the birds singing and the butterflies puddling! Gorgeous photos one and all, Lisa!
The mystery moths are: Grapevine Epimenis (Psychomorpha epimenis). they feed mostly on wild grapevines.... very attractive ones. The Swallowtails puddling - it appears that they are squirming their bodies into the moisture - perhaps it's their way to cool down on a hot day, or just for the fun of it.