My Dreamy Duskywing Contribution to BAMONA

Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) is an important site for me because it helps me identify the butterflies and moths that I photograph. Sometimes I can narrow a butterfly or moth identification only to the correct genus and this site can help me identify which species. By comparing photographs from other contributors in Vermont and reading about when the species was sighted, you can narrow down your choices for identification.

Many times a species is known to be in an area but simply has not been reported to the site. This is what happened to me when I photographed a new (for me) brown butterfly in May. For various reasons (most of which were ignorance), I thought I had photographed a moth. But the experts at bugguide.net told me this was a spread-wing skipper called the Dreamy Duskywing. I then went to the BAMONA page for this duskywing and found that there were no dreamy duskywing sightings ever reported for Orleans County in Vermont. (Interestingly, there was another Vermont dreamy duskywing reported in Windham County within a week of mine.) This was what I had been waiting for! I always want to submit a sighting to BAMONA, but I always photograph butterflies that have already  been reported for Orleans County. I submitted my photograph and the details of the sighting and waited for official verification of the identification.

Verification has arrived, and I am now a true contributor to BAMONA! Scroll about one-third of the way down this page, then click the “Sightings Table” tab, and there I am! The details of my sighting can be seen if you click “Details” in the right-hand column. My sighting record is #538083 and I am proud. I hope to report more sightings in the future.

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Five Species In One Hour

Mourning Cloak Butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa)

This was the year for lilacs. Both of my old bushes were magnificent this year. The air around the entire house smelled of lilac. The diversity and quantity of insects that came to feed on the bushes was outstanding. At one time we would have two dozen swallowtails and many more of other species. There were other insects, also, and I will deal with them in another post. This post is only for the five species of butterflies that I found in one day on one bush in one hour. So far this season, I have identified two new butterflies for my photographic collection. One of the new ones is here — the Dreamy Duskywing.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)

I couldn't decide which swallowtail photo to post!

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)

Hobomok Skipper (Poanes hobomok)

Dreamy Duskywing (Erynnis icelus)

Odd Shot of the Dreamy Duskywing in flight.

Cabbage White Butterfly (Pieris rapae)

Watch for my next posts because I have some exciting photographs to share! I love bugs! How many species have you seen on one plant at one time?

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