New or Notable This Week: Peck’s Skipper, Sachem, Zabulon Skipper, Northern Cloudywing, Early Hairstreak, European Peacock, Southern Dogface
I didn’t exactly rush to print with this Forecast, since we’re socked in with rain and cool weather all weekend. In fact, the last week wasn’t all that great for butterflying, but there were some really interesting sightings. Plus I was waiting on permission to use the great pictures that accompany this week’s edition, for which we are as always so grateful.
Topping the list is European Peacock in Virginia Beach, near the same location where the species was observed in early April. This of course raises the distinct possibility that there is a persistent colony here instead of a long-lived individual. I received a couple of notes after my post on the April Peacock sighting that there are well-established colonies of Peacock in Canada (especially around Quebec) and probable other colonies in Canada and the US Northeast. This flashy species, like many of our spring nymphalids, overwinters as an adult and emerges in spring as the host plant, nettles, begins to sprout. Like Common Blue, European Peacock appears to be entrenched and expanding its range in North America. Perhaps we are witnessing the establishment of a bulkhead here in the mid-Atlantic.
Also intriguing is a report first made in mid-April of a Southern Dogface, but originally identified as a Clouded Sulphur (because who’s expecting a Southern Dogface in the spring?!) so it didn’t catch my attention at first. This is a species with known migratory tendencies, so it might be worthwhile to pay close heed to sulphurs over the next couple of weeks. Both Orange and Clouded Sulphurs of course are on the wing now, too. West Virginia White is peaking, while Falcate Orangetip is dwindling fast. Olympia Marble is probably over for the year.
Another nymphalid is also beginning to tick up; we’re seeing reports of American Snout across the region. Meadow and Variegated Fritillaries are showing well, but Red Admiral and both Ladies are in short supply this week.
I like having my Prognostications borne out, and last week’s forecast for Peck’s, Sachem, and Zabulon Skippers matched sightings of both this past week. Also new to the 2022 rolls was Northern Cloudywing. It’s been an outstanding year for Cobweb Skipper (reports keep coming in with good numbers). Common Checkered-skipper is trending up across the region.
Also of interest after the discussion in the last Almanac were reports this week of Gemmed Satyr even nearer the DC metro area and well within the Almanac region, at Phelps Wildlife Management Area in Sumerduck/Remington VA. As one of our regular readers notes, this effectively cuts the former known distance to DC for Gemmed Satyr in half — that’s only about 2 hours away!
Lycaenids continue to make good showings this spring, as well, led by another sighting of Early Hairstreak, this one nearer the DC metro close to Massanutten in VA. Frosted Elfin is emerging in better numbers, and the other local elfins — Henry’s, Brown, and Eastern Pine — are still holding on well. A fresh brood of Red-banded Hairstreaks is on the wing, as are continuing Juniper, White M, and Gray Hairstreaks. Great Purple Hairstreak is beginning to pop in VA so probably also flying on MD’s Eastern Shore. A nice confirmed record of Cherry Gall Azure came in from Garrett Co., and we had continuing Spring and Northern Azure reports. It’s also apparently quite a good year for Harvester, with multiple sightings around the region.
Prognistications: Dusted Skipper will be out shortly, and the year’s first Giant Swallowtails should be showing up as well. As the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail spring population begins to fade out, Appalachian Tiger Swallowtails will begin its flight.
Bonus Pic:
Food for Thought: In 1995, Britain and much of western Europe suffered one of the most damaging droughts in recent history. A lot of butterfly and other insect species crashed, notably Cabbage White. After the drought eased, how if at all did the butterfly species respond when the drought eased?
Writing in the journal Nature, researchers from University College London have noted that butterflies in areas with intense agriculture fared much worse than those with low intensity agriculture. Interviewed in for the news site El Pais, corresponding author Charlotte Outhwaite notes that “intensive agriculture sites that have also experienced substantial climate change have about 50% fewer insects than primary vegetation sites that have not experienced significant climate change,” says Outhwaite. What’s new about the study is that it looks at the relationship between land-use change and global warming. “The percentage of the reduction is the result of the interaction of the two factors, we do not measure how much of this change is the responsibility of each one separately. The important thing is that both [climate change and crops] work together to cause a greater decline than if they worked alone,” she adds. And the researchers know this because “with the same level of climate change, we see greater reductions in intensive agriculture compared to low-intensity agriculture,” he concludes. In fact, in the first, the reduction in abundance remains at 30% and diversity at 23%.
The article in Nature, Agriculture and Climate Change are Reshaping Insect Biodiversity Worldwide, was published in March.
The weekly Almanac captures sightings and butterfly news from the heart of the mid-Atlantic, roughly 3 hours in any direction from DC. Share your observations and questions about regional butterflies here as a comment or, if you’re in Maryland or DC, on MDLepsOdes, the Google Group for field observations of leps and odonates.
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