NABA Butterfly Count 2015!

As usual, the North American Butterfly Association’s Butterfly Count started at 9 am in Lick Creek Park. Our resident butterfly expert (Bruce, of course!) was out of town so the group was led by another local expert, Jim Snyder.  Volunteers consisted of Rio Brazos Audubon members, TMN members and people with no affilation who heard about the count and just showed up.  We were also joined by several members of the NABA Houston group and they were a big help to us beginners! 

Volunteers at Lick Creek Park

It was a successful day overall!  Twenty (!!) volunteers started at Lick Creek Park in the morning.  It was a GREAT turnout!  After lunch with the heat of the day upon us, the numbers dropped to nine volunteers combing though Millican Reserve and Bee Creek Park.  At Lick Creek Park we didn’t see any Zebra Heliconian like we had last weekend on Bruce’s butterfly walk.  Maybe Rick photographed the demise of the last one mid-week!  Who knew that dragonflies eat butterflies?! 

Zebra Heliconian getting eaten by a Black-shouldered Spinyleg Dragonfly.  Rick took this picture a few days before the NABA count.  

At Millican Reserve there were so many dragonflies the butterfly numbers were pretty low.  We actually saw Common or White Checkerspot-skippers fleeing from dragonflies.

Bee Creek Park brought a renewed vigor to the search… maybe it was the just the heat getting to us!  But we did add several new species to the list. 

Left: Gulf Fritillary from Lick Creek Park    Right: Fiery Skipper from Lick Creek Park

 

Lady butterflies were out ovipositing!  Left: Female Common or White Checkerspot Skipper from Lick Creek Park   Right: Female Horace's Duskywing from Lick Creek Park

Comparing the emperors!  Left: Hackberry Emperor making friends with Mark in Bee Creek Park   Right: Tawny Emperor from Bee Creek Park

Comparing Hairstreaks!  Left: Gray Hairstreak from Lick Creek Park (seen on Bruce's butterfly walk on June 4)    Middle: Dusky-blue Groundstreak from Bee Creek Park    Right: Red-banded Hairstreak from Lick Creek Park (seen on Bruce's butterfly walk on June 4).

Two views of a Red-spotted Purple from Lick Creek Park

Of course, butterflies don’t pose on demand and it can be frustrating to try and identify them on the fly.  That’s ok, we had plenty of other critters to look at!

Left: Delta Flower Scarab on Rattlesnake Master from Lick Creek Park    Right: Southern Leopard Frog from Lick Creek Park

Left: Green Anole from Lick Creek Park    Right: Greater Roadrunner from Millican Reserve

Left: Great Blue Skimmer from Lick Creek Park    Right: Widow Skimmer from Lick Creek Park

It was a wonderful count day!  If you couldn’t attend and still want to see butterflies, they’re still around.  You don’t have to walk miles through Lick Creek Park to see them, either.  Gardens throughout town should have butterflies visiting nectar plants. 

Thanks to everyone who came out!  Have a wonderful timing watching butterflies during the summer months!