That is a very cool in flight picture!

Beautiful pipevine butterflies too!

Another little Juniper Hairstreak



I am especially fond of their striped antennas.

Love to see one of those. Up here they're like all blue or grey.

We have an endemic butterfly known as Sweadner's Hairstreak which is green and eats Red Cedar. I'm right on the boundary for it, but that's one reason I planted my Red Cedar when trying to choose which native tree to go with.

Hmm...I don't do formal public speaking but I once went to a coworker's Bible Study night she did with kids from the neighborhood. That was fun. Earlier this year, I got an invite from a teacher when I was shopping at a local nursery but it was over in Pinellas County and that's a long drive.

No butterflies yet today, so I'm just chillin' in the AC. Mom and I are planning our trip to Silver Springs. Mom's a disabled veteran so she can get in free to the state parks if she has a pass. So she's gathering up her info so we can go get her pass this week before we head to Silver Springs. We both have passes for federal lands, like the Ocala National Forest we will be visiting, as well. She used to have a county pass, but I think it expired. If you have to be disabled, try to get the most out of it, folks!

GrammaChar .. What a wonderful photo !!!

Melanie ,, You know it is hot outside When ?


Even the Monarchs would rather hang out in the shade
Index made 98 today

GrammaChar said:Another little Juniper Hairstreak



I am especially fond of their striped antennas.

Amazing photos Char! Their striped antennas & their striped legs TOO! Those little hairstreaks have it ALL going on.

mellielong said:We have an endemic butterfly known as Sweadner's Hairstreak which is green and eats Red Cedar. I'm right on the boundary for it, but that's one reason I planted my Red Cedar when trying to choose which native tree to go with.

I was looking this up to see where in the range I am as I have red cedar trees. I ran across this article which I find pretty interesting.
https://www.researchgate.net/p...
A case of how far misinformation travels especially in government circles.

Interesting article, Ann! There's so much misinformation out there. Mom laid out the gardening section of the Times this weekend because they had an article about moths. And one of the pictures was supposed to be the Polka-Dot Moth (aka Oleander Moth), but it was a different wasp-type mimic. Did no one notice the moth in the picture had no dots?

I agree with Jim's Monarch. Shade only.

I did have to go out to get food for the Black Swallowtails and the lone Spicebush cat. And that's when I found out I had been egg-bombed by a Pipevine Swallowtail. I've asked MOSI if they want them since I'll be traveling soon. Plus, I don't think I have enough food for all these eggs.

I had seen a torn up Red Spotted Purple yesterday a BST , a Monarch , lots of skippers .
Today two Monarch and a Sulphur , Still not many letting me photo , That Monarch today was from distance with the zoom on , (I do not do that well )

I hope you find them all a home Melanie , Hoping your travel goes well ,

I thought you did an excellent job of zooming in on the monarch Jim. I don't see a single thing wrong with the photo.
The hubs & I were watching the temps in other parts of the country today & yes, you guys are really getting beat up! It's super rare when we're cooler than places much farther north (we didn't quite reach 88 today) but I understand all of us in the east are going to be sweltering soon. The "dome" is back. They said 10 - 20 degrees above normal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Say it ain't so!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Melanie, the Times.....(I really need a shaking head emoji). You just wonder if no one wonders anymore. A polka dot moth with no polka dots. That would send me running for the computer to Google. I dunno. This is why what I read in the paper is only taken with a grain of salt. I don't think they check facts these days.

Those are the prettiest orange eggs.

Ann About the Monarch photo Sun lightnin Shade lighting with thewind blowing it back and forth was why I said about the Zoom , and thank goodness for digital ..
Well try and stay comfortable , These freeze winters and hot summers , without spring or fall are ridiculous ...

GrammaChar. Your photos are beautiful. I like them most because we don't have those butterflies here !

@ceci
I'm sorry that you don't get to experience butterflies, and am so happy that my photos allow you to see them.
But your beautiful country still provides us with the sexiest bull riders!!!!! And dancers!!!!

I was bombed too Melanie including a few plants I am taking to the Mid Atlantic Fall swap this saturday .
I need to do an exact count tomorrow. I just noticed them tonight when I was repotting one plant ,
but a quick look confirmed they are on more then that one plant.

GrammaChar, There are lots of butterflies here, in my country, but they are different from those that you showed in your post .

Ceci gets awesome butterflies. Some of them the same ones I see in Florida, some quite different!

Kurt got egg bombed, too!

ceci said:GrammaChar, There are lots of butterflies here, in my country, but they are different from those that you showed in your post .

Could you get some pictures??? I'd LOVE to see your butterflies!!!!!

Looking at these eggs on these plants makes me want to sing ~~~
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
They look like little Christmas ornaments.

Cecilia has some amazing butterflies! I guess it's only starting to be spring there though.



15 cats in there on the bottom


This is the lid with 2 chrysalises. One might be stuck. They both started at the same time but you see the far one is not fully chrysalized yet. I'll see if it doesn't get it right by morning. Photos aren't great as I was holding the lid high with my left hand while taking photos with the right hand. Left hand is rather shaky. There are 3 cats up there too who are about to make their silk buttons.


This is the lid on what I call the incubation chamber. 13 chrysalises. Again with the shaky hand.


Just for fun because I thought the lighting effect looked cool. The one on the left with it's old skin still at the top of the chrysalis is the first one that made it's chrysalis & that everyone else was crawling on.

I think this is a Idaea tacturata or Dot Lined Wave moth. Whatever it is, it was sooooooooooooooooooooo pretty! Tomorrow, if I don't forget, I'm going to have to submit it to BAMONA & see if I have the ID correct.



Tiny thing. It was on Baby Joe Pye weed & you know how small those blooms are.

GrammaChar, we are at the end of Winter here. I'll post pictures as soon as I see butterflies here.