Baby Butterflies (and moths)

                                                         Wooly Bear Molting

                                                  Black and Brown Wooly Bear

                                                  Gold and Orange Wooly Bear

                                                Hyalaphora columbia (silk moth)

                                                      Black Swallowtail

While in Arizon, I saw bunches of caterpillars. Wooly bears everywhere! So they were mostly moths. Like the tussock moth. In Ramsey Canyon, you could barely take a step without bumping into a tussock moth hanging from a tree. I guess the Black Swallowtail was the only butterfly.

Not Butterflies

                                                            Grasshopper

                                            Pupfish in Tohono Chul Park

                                                          Flower Beetles on Dalea

                                                       Stick Insect.

                                                                     Beetle

                                                                  Grasshopper

We saw other insects and other animals on our trip. Above are a few of them.I wonder if that stick insect is native. I know most of the stick insects I see in Berkeley are escaped classroom pets.

Danaus gilippus--Queen

I have never seen a Queen in the Bay Area, but they are common in Arizona. These were in Tohono Chul Park. They are milkweed butterflies, the caterpillars eat milkweed, like Monarchs.

Giant Swallowtail

I took a trip to Arizona for the North American Butterfly Association meeting. I flew into Tuscon and did a bit of sightseeing first. The Air and Space Museum was boring (no butterflies), but Tohono Chul Park was lovely. It was actually more of a botanical garden, with names for the plants, gift shops, restaurant, and even a little museum with exhibits. The butterflies were great! The Giant Swallowtail was nectaring on Lantana. The caterpillars eat citrus and can sometimes they can be a pest.

Multivoltine Butterflies

I found a Gulf Fritillary in my garden today, eating Passiflora 'Berkeley.' Seems like I see adults and caterpillars almost all year around. However, I read something different in the North American Butterfly Association's publication, American Butterflies. In the Spring 2011 issue is an article titled, "Food for Thought: Butterfly Hostplants and Ranges." In the article, authored by Jeffrey Glassberg, is a map indicating that Gulf Fritillaries have two brood per year in most of California. I don't think so. Seems like it must be five or more, given how long it takes them to go through a generation and how much of the year they fly. I am going to have to start documenting their life cycles. So this photo is the first data point. Large caterpillar eating on August 31. Gulf Fritillaries are tropical butterflies that just don't seem to understand seasons.

Monkey Hand Tree

I first posted this pic in my blog in June 2010.

http://berkeleybutterflyblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/when-i-first-saw-this-specimen-ground.html

Then in May of this year, someone who claimed to be from Natural History Magazine contacted me and said that they wanted to use my photo in the May issue. I was suspicious. After all, it was already May, and she was using a gmail account.

I contacted the magazine, and they said that it was legit. So I gave permission, and asked for money.

And this month, I got the "May" issue of the magazine, with my photo. And credit! No money as yet, though. I guess the message is that everybody like to take pictures of pretty flowers. But it can be hard to find pics of of seeds and seed pods.

The article, titled, "Curse of the Monkey Hand Tree" is a story about the search for Chiranthodendron pentadactylon  in habitat in Mexico. A nice piece, if you like reading about intrepid botanists, which I do.

It was just a snapshot taken at the UC Botanical Garden. And now I am famous! ;-)

Satyr Anglewing in Flatlands Berkeley

A Satyr Anglewing showed up in my backyard today. They are unusual around here, so I was surprised and excited. They lay their eggs on nettle. I don't have nettle. And no nectar in the backyard. So I don't know why it liked it there, but it kept coming back.I guess my neighbors must have some nettle.