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