(Dr. Jeffrey Glassberg’s adventures continue in Missouri! The featured image above is a Red-banded Hairstreak, in Benton County, MO -ed.)
Apparently, Missouri holds groundhog’s day on April 22, because when I awoke today, it was exactly as it was yesterday. Gray sky and glum face.
So, I used the morning to deal with various NABA issues. By the time that I write this up for American Butterflies, I may be able to say what they were.
Around 11:30, I drove to Truman SP. Around noon, the sun was actually visible for about 5 minutes but then went back to sleep. I was jealous.
I walked around for the next 1 ½ hours and did see a few species that I hadn’t seen yesterday – but no Ozark Swallowtails. Because I’m a slow learner, there were some exciting moments that involved Pipevine Swallowtails. Also, the Red-banded Hairstreaks and Common Roadside-Skippers had just emerged, and so were particularly beautiful. Butterflies seen were: Pipevine Swallowtail 4, Gray Hairstreak 1, Red-banded Hairstreak 2, Eastern Tailed-Blue 15, Pearl Crescent 1, Red Admiral 1, Northern Cloudywing 1, Juvenal’s Duskywing 15, Horace’s Duskywing 1, Wild Indigo Duskywing 1, Common Roadside-Skipper 2.
After a dinner of enchiladas suizas, I watched the Brooklyn Nets get eliminated from the playoffs (the Wild Indigo Duskywings have NEVER made the playoffs). It was a particularly ugly game to unfortunately end what was a great and fun Nets basketball year.
I wait on the weather gods.
