Hot Summer Days in a Butterfly Haze

Shared by Kim Bailey, Naturalist

kim.bailey@nashville.gov

All photos courtesy Kim Bailey except where noted

July 2021

Some people count sheep to go to sleep, but nature center staff and volunteers count butterflies for the pure joy of it – at least for the first few hours of a day-long count. Once the Sun rises in the sky and the sweat begins to pour down our faces, the enthusiasm wanes. But being dedicated citizen scientists, we trudge on. 

Red-spotted Purple butterflies are black and blue like many swallowtailed-butterflies, but lack the "swallowtail". 

Three butterfly counts take place each year in May, July and September. The data we collect on these all-day counts is sent to the North American Butterfly Association (NABA), an organization formed to protect and track butterflies across the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Begun in 1993, the data has proved to be an important tool for monitoring butterfly populations and studying the effects of weather and habitat change on North American butterflies. 

The first time I went on a butterfly count, I was overwhelmed. It seemed most butterflies had some mix of orange and brown scales and distinguishing them seemed impossible. The experienced butterfly enthusiast I accompanied called out names that sounded foreign to my ears. Sachem, Northern Pearly Eye, Silvery Checkerspot, Northern Broken-Dash – how would I ever learn the names, much less the butterfly?

Naturalists carry this Tennessee species list to mark off those seen during a butterfly count.

As with birding, it takes time. And the help of other enthusiasts. One by one, fellow naturalists Melissa Donahue, then Rebecca Dandekar, then Will Chamberlain joined the team.

Melissa Donahue, Rebecca Dandekar and Will Chamberlain look for butterflies on a pleasantly cool count day in May. 

Slowly but surely we began to make sense of the varied patterns. We looked for the small white spot on the hind wing of a Silvery Checkerspot that distinguishes it from a Pearl Crescent.

One of the distinguishing features of a Silvery Checkerspot (top photo) is the light spot or spots in the center of the brown spot(s) on the bottom of the open hind wing! The similarly-patterned Pearl Crescent (bottom photo) lacks this mark.

We searched for the face on the American Lady.

Can you find the woman’s face in the hindwing of an American Lady? Photo courtesy Will Cook

We strained to find either a question mark or a comma on the closed wing of this cryptic butterfly.

Note the two small white marks on the closed wing form somewhat of a question mark, confirming its identity.

We checked for “tails” – slender hindwing extensions on some butterflies- to determine if we had a Spring Azure or an Eastern Tailed Blue.

Eastern-Tailed Blues (top photo) have tiny hindwing extensions that they move back and forth, presumably to look like antennae, confusing a would-be predator into going for the rear of the butterfly. Note how similar the Spring Azure (bottom photo) appears at first glance.

We were grateful whenever a distinctive butterfly landed nearby.

Hackberry Butterflies are extremely friendly, often landing on a sweaty person in search of a salty drink. Note the white-tipped antennae.

No other Tennessee butterfly has a snout-like face, making this species a cinch to identify. American Snouts can be quite friendly as well.

The giant “eyes” on a Buckeye make it an easy species to call.

There is no mistaking a large yellow butterfly with black stripes for anything but a Tiger Swallowtail.

Of course, some female Tiger Swallowtails (top photo) are black, mimicking toxic Pipevine Swallowtails (bottom photo)! Isn’t nature fascinating?

But when it came to Skippers, the small brownish butterflies that often go unnoticed, we discovered butterfly identification can drive a perfectly sane naturalist crazy! You may have heard little brown birds referred to as “Little Brown Jobs”. Well that term applies to certain butterflies as well! What would we do without Rita Venable’s Butterflies of Tennessee?!

Butterflies of Tennessee is an invaluable resource to the staff. 

With time, we learned to stop calling every Skipper a Sachem at first glance!

“Fresh” female Sachems have a distinctive chevron pattern on their closed hindwing. As they age, markings often become obscured.

It turns out the Park has quite a lot of Zabulon Skippers. Interestingly, the female is very different from the male in both pattern and behavior.

The brightly colored males love to perch in the sun out in the open. The darker females have a purplish frosting on the outer wing edges and a diagnostic white lining on the upper hindwing edge. They prefer to stay close to the ground in shadier areas when not nectaring. Photo credit Kenneth Heiar

On the hottest of NABA count days, we might wonder how we will make it through the day. But occasionally a butterfly appears that we have never seen in the Park before and euphoria strikes! Two hairstreaks have been added to the Warner Park species list in the last six years.

This tiny green Juniper Hairstreak uses Eastern Red Cedar as a host plant and was found nectaring on flowers growing in front of the cedars in the nature center parking lot.

What a beauty the Great Purple Hairstreak is! This butterfly caused much excitement, staying on the edge of the Meadow Tree Trail long enough for lots of people to come admire its bright colors.

As you can see, the rewards are many if you put the time in to learn your butterflies. Those “winged flowers” become distinct species over time with unique behaviors and flight patterns. Knowing that the data we submit might help reveal a species in trouble or identify preferred habitat for a declining species is enough to motivate any butterfly-loving citizen scientist. If you have an interest in volunteering, contact us and we will get you started. Not only will we help you learn your butterflies, but I can almost guarantee you that butterflies will visit your dreams after you spend a day in the field counting them!

For more information about the Warner Park Butterfly Counts, volunteering for a count or butterflies in general, email the nature center at wpnc@nashville.gov