South Shore trip – Allen’s Pond area (Westport / Dartmouth) Bristol Co. MA (9/11/21)

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Matthew Arey

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Sep 11, 2021, 8:14:38 PM9/11/21
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South Shore trip – Allen’s Pond area (Westport / Dartmouth) Bristol Co. MA (9/11/21)

Weather conditions: Sunny, warm, breezy late – 75-80 deg.F

I ran into Michael Newton and some other folks with the Mass. Butterfly Club attending a field trip to the site. Lots of decent late summer nectar sources and quite a list of species encountered.

Eastern Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes asterius) 2 females

Monarch (Danaus plexippus) 75+ most abundant on the Beach Loop trail upon these flowering shrubs called Salt Marsh Groundsel (Baccharis glutinosa).

Red Spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis astayanax) 1 female, slight wear

American Painted Lady (Vanessa virginiana) 10+, mostly at Sylvan Nursery

Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa) 2

Buckeye (Junonia coenia) 15+, fresh

Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) 10+

Common Ringlet (Ceononympha tullia inornata) 1 or 2

 

American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) 5+

Eastern Tailed Blue (Everes comyntas) 5+

Summer Azure (Celastrina neglecta) 3 or 4

White-M Hairstreak (Parhassius m-album) 1 worn on the Groundsel

 

Sachem Skipper (Atalopedes campestris) 30+ common, fresh

Peck’s Skipper (Polites peckius) 12+

Tawny Edged Skipper (Polites themistocles) 2 or 3

Least Skipper (Ancyloxypha numitor) 5+

Zabulon Skipper (Poanes zabulon) 3 or 4 (Sylvan)

Broad Winged Skipper (Poanes viator) 2

Dun Skipper (Euphyes vestris) 1 or 2 (Sylvan) worn

Ocola Skipper (Panoquin ocola) 2 or 3 (Sylvan)

 

Sulphurs and Whites – abundant

A brief stop at Great Blue Hill (Canton / Milton) later in the afternoon produced the following. Lots of nectar in here and unusual plants on the lower slopes.

 

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Pterourus glaucus) 1

Eastern Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes asterius) 1 male, worn

 

Monarch (Danaus plexippus) 12+

Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) 1 female, worn

American Painted Lady (Vanessa virginiana) 2 or 3

Common Ringlet (Coenonympha tullia inornata) 5+

 

Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus) 5+

Red Banded Hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops) 1, worn – interestingly a lot of Scrub Oak at the summit.

Eastern Tailed Blue (Everes comyntas) 15+ common

 

Peck’s Skipper (Polites peckius) 10+

Long Dash Skipper (Polites mystic) 1

Zabulon Skipper (Poanes zabulon) 1, worn

Wild Indigo Duskywing (Erynnis baptisiae) 2

 

Sulphurs and Whites – plenty (predominately C. eurytheme)

 

M. Arey

 

 

 

 

 


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