December 2018 Sightings
James L. Monroe
Castellow Hammock Park
Miami-Dade County, FL
- Polydamas Swallowtail 1
- Zebra Heliconian 6
Amelia Grimm
National Key Deer Refuge pollinator garden
Monroe County, FL
At Jack Watson Nature trail. With Leigh Williams
- Large Orange Sulphur 1
- Cassius Blue 1
- Monarch 1
- Hammock Skipper 1
- Florida Duskywing 6
- Southern Broken-Dash 2
- Palatka Skipper 2
Mark and Holly Salvato
Falcon State Park
Starr County, TX
- Black Swallowtail 1
- Checkered White
- Southern Dogface
- Cloudless Sulphur
- Large Orange Sulphur
- Lyside Sulphur
- Tailed Orange
- Little Yellow
- Sleepy Orange
- Dainty Sulphur
- Gray Hairstreak
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak
- Fatal Metalmark
- American Snout
- Gulf Fritillary
- Variegated Fritillary
- Mexican Fritillary
- Bordered Patch
- Elada Checkerspot
- Phaon Crescent
- American Lady
- Red Admiral
- White Peacock
- Common Mestra
- Tropical Leafwing
- Hackberry Emperor
- Empress Leilia
- Monarch
- Queen
- Soldier
- Two-barred Flasher 1
- Sickle-winged Skipper
- White Checkered-Skipper
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper
- Clouded Skipper
- Fiery Skipper
- Eufala Skipper
Karl and Dorothy Legler
Resaca de la Palma State Park
Cameron County, TX
Cold weather at beginning of November reduced plants and butterflies here. Density of butterflies was low but persistence found 27 species.
- Cloudless Sulphur 5
- Lyside Sulphur 4
- Boisduval's Yellow 1
- Little Yellow 8
- Dainty Sulphur 1
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 2
- Blue Metalmark 1
- American Snout 3
- Gulf Fritillary 2
- Julia Heliconian 1
- Phaon Crescent 5
- White Peacock 5
- Mexican Bluewing 2
- Common Mestra 2
- Carolina Satyr 5
- Queen 15
- Guava Skipper 1
- Brown Longtail 2
- Sickle-winged Skipper 6
- White Checkered-Skipper 2
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper 4
- Laviana White-Skipper 1
- Clouded Skipper 6
- Fiery Skipper 3
- Whirlabout 2
- Common Mellana 1
- Eufala Skipper 1
James L. Monroe
Paleo Hammock
St. Lucie County, FL
- Cloudless Sulphur 2
- Barred Yellow 3
- Sleepy Orange 1
- Red-banded Hairstreak 1
- Cassius Blue 4
- Phaon Crescent 1
- Pearl Crescent 1
- White Peacock abundant
- Monarch 2
- Queen 17
- Dorantes Longtail 3
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper 7
- Fiery Skipper 1
- Delaware Skipper 1
- Ocola Skipper 1
Mark and Holly Salvato
National Butterfly Center, Mission
Hidalgo County, TX
- Checkered White 3
- Southern Dogface
- Large Orange Sulphur
- Lyside Sulphur
- Tailed Orange
- Little Yellow
- Mimosa Yellow 1
- Sleepy Orange
- Dainty Sulphur
- Gray Hairstreak
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak
- Lantana Scrub-Hairstreak 1
- Dusky-blue Groundstreak
- Clytie Ministreak
- Western Pygmy-Blue
- Marine Blue 1
- Ceraunus Blue
- Reakirt's Blue
- Fatal Metalmark
- Red-bordered Pixie 1
- American Snout
- Gulf Fritillary
- Variegated Fritillary
- Mexican Fritillary
- Bordered Patch
- Vesta Crescent
- Phaon Crescent
- American Lady
- Red Admiral
- Common Buckeye
- White Peacock
- Common Mestra
- Tropical Leafwing
- Empress Leilia
- Tawny Emperor
- Carolina Satyr
- Monarch
- Queen
- Soldier
- Brown Longtail
- Sickle-winged Skipper
- White Checkered-Skipper
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper
- Laviana White-Skipper
- Fawn-spotted Skipper
- Clouded Skipper
- Southern Skipperling
- Fiery Skipper
- Whirlabout
- Sachem
- Common Mellana
- Eufala Skipper
Karl and Dorothy Legler
Bentsen State Park
Hidalgo County, TX
We found 31 species. 82 degrees and partly cloudy.
- Southern Dogface 3
- Large Orange Sulphur 3
- Lyside Sulphur 2
- Tailed Orange 1
- Little Yellow common
- Sleepy Orange 1
- Gray Hairstreak 2
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 2
- Dusky-blue Groundstreak 1
- Fatal Metalmark 2
- Red-bordered Metalmark 1
- American Snout common
- Gulf Fritillary 5
- Bordered Patch 2
- Phaon Crescent 6
- White Peacock common
- Common Mestra 5
- Empress Leilia 2
- Carolina Satyr 1
- Queen abundant
- Sickle-winged Skipper 9
- White-patched Skipper 2
- White Checkered-Skipper 1
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper common
- Laviana White-Skipper 2
- Fawn-spotted Skipper 7
- Clouded Skipper common
- Fiery Skipper 2
- Whirlabout 6
- Common Mellana 1
- Eufala Skipper 1
Linda Romine
Meldahl Lock and Dam, Chilo Lock #34 Park
Clermont County, OH
Only one comma seen at Chilo, rest seen at Meldahl. Sunny, 66 degrees, very windy. A week ago saw 10 Orange Sulphurs and a Cabbage White at Meldahl. Probably the last butterflies for the year.
- Orange Sulphur 4
- Question Mark 1
- Eastern Comma 2
- Barred Yellow 3
- Common Buckeye 1
- White Peacock common
- Carolina Satyr 2
- Monarch 2
- Queen 5
- Dorantes Longtail 5
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper 3
- Neamathla Skipper 1
- Clouded Skipper 1
Amelia Grimm
Ft. Zachary Historic State Park, Key West
Monroe County, FL
Northwest hammock and field only. The most Monk Skippers we have seen in one area. Some were worn, some very fresh and some mating. With Leigh Williams.
- Giant Swallowtail 1
- Large Orange Sulphur 1
- Barred Yellow 10
- Little Yellow 2
- Martial Scrub-Hairstreak 3
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 10
- Cassius Blue abundant
- Ceraunus Blue 4
- Gulf Fritillary 1
- Queen 3
- Southern Broken-Dash 6
- Monk Skipper 12
Karl and Dorothy Legler
Frontera Audubon in Weslaco
Hidalgo County, TX
Hour and a half. 26 species. (Butterflies and cookies! It doesn’t get any better than this!)
- Southern Dogface 2
- Cloudless Sulphur 1
- Large Orange Sulphur 2
- Lyside Sulphur 2
- Little Yellow 2
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 1
- Cassius Blue 6
- American Snout 6
- Gulf Fritillary 7
- Vesta Crescent 3
- Phaon Crescent 4
- Red Admiral 2
- White Peacock 8
- Common Mestra 16
- Queen common
- Brown Longtail 2
- Sickle-winged Skipper 1
- White-patched Skipper 2
- White Checkered-Skipper 1
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper common
- Laviana White-Skipper 3
- Fawn-spotted Skipper 1
- Clouded Skipper 2
- Fiery Skipper common
- Whirlabout 2
- Eufala Skipper 1
Karl and Dorothy Legler
National Butterfly Center, Mission.
Hidalgo County, TX
75 degrees, sun subdued by moderate clouds. 39 species. It was great fun to see so many Red-bordered Pixies!
- Black Swallowtail 1
- Checkered White 3
- Orange Sulphur 1
- Southern Dogface 6
- Large Orange Sulphur 1
- Lyside Sulphur 8
- Little Yellow common
- Dainty Sulphur 1
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak common
- Lantana Scrub-Hairstreak 1
- Dusky-blue Groundstreak 1
- Western Pygmy-Blue 1
- Ceraunus Blue common
- Reakirt's Blue 1
- Fatal Metalmark 3
- Red-bordered Pixie 11
- American Snout 6
- Gulf Fritillary 10
- Mexican Fritillary 1
- Vesta Crescent 2
- Phaon Crescent 9
- Red Admiral 7
- White Peacock 3
- Common Mestra 9
- Tropical Leafwing 1
- Tawny Emperor 11
- Carolina Satyr 3
- Monarch 1
- Queen common
- Sickle-winged Skipper 3
- White Checkered-Skipper 5
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper common
- Laviana White-Skipper common
- Fawn-spotted Skipper 6
- Clouded Skipper 6
- Southern Skipperling 5
- Fiery Skipper 5
- Common Mellana 1
- Eufala Skipper 2
Karl and Dorothy Legler
Falcon State Park
Starr County, TX
About 75 degrees, sunny and no wind. Afternoon. 19 species. Few flowers except for small ones in mowed areas. The only skippers seen were Checkered-Skippers.
- Black Swallowtail 2
- Southern Dogface common
- Large Orange Sulphur 3
- Lyside Sulphur common
- Little Yellow common
- Sleepy Orange 6
- Dainty Sulphur common
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 4
- Western Pygmy-Blue 5
- Ceraunus Blue common
- American Snout 4
- Gulf Fritillary 2
- Variegated Fritillary 5
- Vesta Crescent 5
- Phaon Crescent common
- Tropical Leafwing 1
- Queen common
- White Checkered-Skipper 6
- Desert Checkered-Skipper 3
Butterfly Walk at Estero
Estero Llano Grande State Park
Hidalgo County, TX
The afternoon Butterfly Walk was led by Rick Snider. About 3 hours. About a dozen of us. We found 32 species plus a dead Gray Hairstreak and dead Julia’s Skipper.
- Southern Dogface common
- Cloudless Sulphur 1
- Large Orange Sulphur 3
- Lyside Sulphur 4
- Tailed Orange 1
- Little Yellow 3
- Sleepy Orange 2
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 2
- Fatal Metalmark 1
- Rounded Metalmark 1
- American Snout 4
- Gulf Fritillary 4
- Zebra Heliconian 2
- Red Admiral 2
- White Peacock 4
- Mexican Bluewing 1
- Common Mestra 2
- Tawny Emperor 1
- Monarch 1
- Queen common
- Guava Skipper 1
- Brown Longtail 2
- Sickle-winged Skipper 2
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper common
- Laviana White-Skipper common
- Fawn-spotted Skipper 3
- Clouded Skipper 6
- Southern Skipperling 1
- Fiery Skipper 4
- Whirlabout 2
- Eufala Skipper 2
- Olive-clouded Skipper 2
Denis C. Quinn
1 mile west of US route 1 on Mason-Dixon MD/PA line.
Chester County, PA
An earlier walk, mainly in the woods, yielded no butterflies in my usual early spring areas, however later at 14:30 just a hundred feet away in the edge of a harvested corn field 2 Commas were seen, with one photo.
- Eastern Comma 2
- Barred Yellow 9
- Little Yellow 4
- Bartram's Scrub-Hairstreak 3
- Cassius Blue 4
- Ceraunus Blue 2
- Gulf Fritillary 32
- Julia Heliconian 4
- Common Buckeye 3
- White Peacock 5
- Monarch 1
- Queen 4
- Long-tailed Skipper 4
- Dorantes Longtail 2
- Fiery Skipper 4
- Baracoa Skipper 1
- Whirlabout 3
- Northern Broken-Dash 12
- Sachem 1
- Ocola Skipper 3
Mark and Holly Salvato
River Lakes Conservation Area
Brevard County, FL
- Little Yellow 2
- Fulvous Hairstreak 1
- Red-banded Hairstreak 3
- Gulf Fritillary 12
- Zebra Heliconian 3
- Pearl Crescent 1
- Common Buckeye 6
- White Peacock 8
- Long-tailed Skipper 6
- Dorantes Longtail 8
- Fiery Skipper 15
- Southern Broken-Dash 3
- Sachem 2
- Ocola Skipper 18
Karl and Dorothy Legler
National Butterfly Center in Mission
Hidalgo County, TX
Sunny, 78 degrees, somewhat breezy. We found 44 species. Buckeyes of any kind have been scarce. The Whirlabout was female. Our best find was a Mexican Yellow that had settled down for the day, at around 3:30 or so. About 8 inches above ground. Red-bordered Pixies were common!!
- Pipevine Swallowtail 1
- Black Swallowtail 1
- Checkered White 2
- Cloudless Sulphur 6
- Large Orange Sulphur 5
- Lyside Sulphur common
- Mexican Yellow 1
- Tailed Orange 1
- Little Yellow common
- Sleepy Orange 2
- Dainty Sulphur 1
- Gray Hairstreak 3
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 3
- Dusky-blue Groundstreak 3
- Ceraunus Blue 2
- Reakirt's Blue 5
- Fatal Metalmark 1
- Red-bordered Pixie 18
- American Snout common
- Gulf Fritillary 3
- Texan Crescent 1
- Vesta Crescent 1
- Phaon Crescent common
- Red Admiral 5
- Tropical Buckeye 1
- White Peacock 1
- Common Mestra 1
- Tropical Leafwing 1
- Tawny Emperor 6
- Queen common
- Dorantes Longtail 1
- Brown Longtail 3
- Sickle-winged Skipper 2
- White Checkered-Skipper common
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper common
- Laviana White-Skipper common
- Julia's Skipper 5
- Fawn-spotted Skipper 6
- Clouded Skipper 8
- Southern Skipperling 2
- Fiery Skipper 8
- Whirlabout 2
- Sachem 1
- Eufala Skipper 3
Ron Smith
Fort De Soto Park
Pinellas County, FL
- Cloudless Sulphur 1
- Barred Yellow 15
- Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak 1
- Eastern Pygmy-Blue 2
- Ceraunus Blue 3
- Gulf Fritillary 7
- Phaon Crescent 9
- White Peacock 3
- Monarch 2
- Mangrove Skipper 1
- White Checkered-Skipper 1
- Fiery Skipper 3
- Obscure Skipper 2
Amelia Grimm
National Key Deer Wildlife Refuge, Long Beach on Big Pine Key
Monroe County, FL
Cool, breezy and partly cloudy. Blue Porter weed and Sea Lavender blooming all along the beach.
- Painted Lady 1
- Mangrove Skipper 3
- Hammock Skipper 1
- Cloudless Sulphur 3
- Gulf Fritillary 1
Barbara Peck
Anderson River Park
Shasta County, CA
This Pipevine Swallowtail was in a lichen covered valley oak. A second was also I the same tree higher up, bright green as well. Normally, this is a very abundant species. This spring and summer numbers were fairly low.
- Pipevine Swallowtail 2
Mike Reese
Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden
Monroe County, FL
- Orange-barred Sulphur 4
- Cassius Blue 2
- Ceraunus Blue 6
- Long-tailed Skipper 1
- Florida Duskywing 1
- Fiery Skipper 2
- Monk Skipper 1
Walter Wallenstein
Lucky Hammock, outside Everglades National Park
Miami-Dade County, FL
- Black Swallowtail 1
- Giant Swallowtail 1
- Great Southern White 21
- Cloudless Sulphur 1
- Cassius Blue 13
- Ceraunus Blue 23
- Gulf Fritillary 12
- Julia Heliconian 1
- Zebra Heliconian 4
- White Peacock 17
- Monarch 7
- Queen 22
- Long-tailed Skipper 7
- Tropical Checkered-Skipper 26
- Three-spotted Skipper 5
- Clouded Skipper 15
- Twin-spot Skipper 2
- Ocola Skipper 1
- Monarch 1
Besides a single adult Polydamas there were 4 caterpillars on Dutchman’s Pipe. The one in the photograph I believe is the fifth instar. It was quite big. The others were smaller.