April 2020 Sightings

Brian Johnson

North Burden hill road
Salem County, NJ

A quick early afternoon walk around the preserve.

[Congrats to Brian for reporting our first orange sulphur of the year. Our last orange sulphur report was made by Brian on 11/26/19 at North Burden Hill rd. - jm]

  • Falcate Orangetip 1
  • Orange Sulphur 1
  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • Spring Azure 1
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 1

Sandra Keller

Piney Hollow Preserve
Gloucester County, NJ

Marilyn and I at mid afternoon. Partly sunny, 54 degrees, 6 to 16 mph NNE winds.

  • Anglewing sp. 4
  • Question Mark 3

Question Mark

Jack Miller

Upper Champion rd
Cape May County, NJ

I believe all of the anglewings were qm's. Where are the commas?

  • Cabbage White 8
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Question Mark 6

Jack Miller

Hunter's Mills rd, s. of rt 49
Cape May County, NJ

11:30. Full sun with wind gusts in the 40's.

  • Henry's Elfin 8
  • Spring Azure 4
  • Anglewing sp. 1

Cynthia Allen

Petersburg Rd., Dennisville
Cape May County, NJ

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jackie Parker

712 Foster Ave.
Cape May County, NJ

First Mourning Cloak in our yard for years!

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jack Miller

Woodbine rr
Cape May County, NJ

1:00 - 3:00. I saw what I thought was a lady fly by and then land. It took quite a long slow stalk to find the lady; I hope the photo explains. I believe the wind kept the action down.

[This is our FOY American lady. Nice to see! jc]

  • Falcate Orangetip 4
  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Question Mark 6
  • American Lady 1

Jersey chorus frogs

Henry's Elfin

American Lady

Brian Johnson

North Burden hill road
Salem County, NJ

Another surprisingly cooperative Orangetip. Picture was taken with my phone.

  • Falcate Orangetip 3
  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • Spring Azure 1

Falcate Orangetip

Nancy Larrabee

Pine Swamp Rd, Belleplain State Forest
Cape May County, NJ

All the Henry's Elfins were on a single holly tree.

  • Henry's Elfin 19
  • Spring Azure 2
  • Question Mark 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Question Mark

Henry's Elfin

Pat & Clay Sutton

Narrow's Road (or Tom Field Rd) in Belleplain State Forest
Cape May County, NJ

More Henry's Elfins in one spot than either of us has ever seen before. At least 100. Gale of wind blowing and quite cool conditions made for easy viewing and photographing along sheltered edges of this road. Many active ground nests of Cellophane Bees (probably Colletes inaequalis) along side trails. Blue Corporal Skimmers (im) flying. Serenaded by Pine and Yellow-throated Warblers, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, and heard one Louisiana Waterthrush.

  • Henry's Elfin 100
  • Eastern Pine Elfin 2
  • Spring Azure 6

Spring Azure

Henry's Elfin

Eastern Pine Elfin

Cellophane bee

Blue Corporal Skimmerr

Jack Miller

my yard Petersburg
Cape May County, NJ

The lady visited while I was working on the property. I have seen three Am. ladies this spring and two have been in my relatively quiet back yard.

  • Cabbage White 1
  • American Lady 1

Sandra Keller & Chris Herz

Wheelabrator Refuge, Westville
Gloucester County, NJ

3-4 pm after working in the garden— sun was intermittent. Short walk to powerline cut only. One orangetip flying just outside the garden and even through it.

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Falcate Orangetip 2
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 2

Juvenal's Duskywing

Brian Johnson

No name road Peaslee
Cumberland County, NJ

This road is about 1 mile west of First Avenue. No luck getting a picture of the Sleepy. I tried.

[Nice to have another FOY – our second skipper and duskywing of 2020. Nice find, Brian! jc]

  • Henry's Elfin 4
  • Eastern Tailed-Blue 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1
  • Sleepy Duskywing 1
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 22

Eastern Tailed-Blue

Brian Johnson

First Avenue Peaslee
Atlantic County, NJ

The Swallowtail was pudding close to Rt.49. It was still there when I got back from a 1 hour walk.

[Our FOY of this beautiful, widely-loved butterfly. Thank you, Brian! jc]

  • Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 1
  • Henry's Elfin 21
  • American Snout 1
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 9

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Cynthia Allen

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

M. Cloak sunning on roof.

  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jack Miller

MacNamara WMA
Cape May County, NJ

I have not been visiting Mac these past weeks as it has now become as busy as a Wawa parking lot (except lots more dogs and bikes). Henry's come in many forms. Mac often produces the greenest ones in the Cape.

[Very cool shot of green highlighted form of Henry's. Cech and Tudor note that this form is found most often in Atlantic coastal populations. jc]

  • Henry's Elfin 8
  • Azure, sp. 3
  • American Snout 1

Steven Glynn

Eppinger Road- Maurice River North access
Salem County, NJ

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Falcate Orangetip 1
  • Henry's Elfin 2
  • Blueberry Azure 3
  • Eastern Tailed-Blue 1
  • Eastern Comma 2
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 2

Falcate Orangetip

Eastern Tailed-Blue

David L. Amadio

Riverwinds Scenic Trail
Gloucester County, NJ

Obs. made from 1:40 to 3:30, 65-67 degrees, partly to mostly cloudy.

  • Cabbage White 4
  • Falcate Orangetip 1
  • Orange Sulphur 1
  • American Copper 4
  • Gray Hairstreak 2
  • Spring Azure 1
  • American Snout 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Red Admiral 1

American Copper

Falcate Orangetip

American Snout

Spring Azure

Dolores Amesbury

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

Enjoyed this sampling of early Spring butterflies!

  • Cabbage White 2
  • Henry's Elfin 2
  • Eastern Tailed-Blue 2
  • Anglewing sp. 4
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 1

Henry's Elfin

Eastern Tailed-Blue

Cabbage White

Steven Glynn

Willow Grove WMA
Cumberland County, NJ

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Henry's Elfin 3
  • Blueberry Azure 3
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 4

Pat Sutton

Sutton GDN in Goshen
Cape May County, NJ

American Snout up in Dwarf Hackberry (Celtis tenuifolia) tree. Buds of tree barely showing.

  • American Snout 1

Steven Glynn

Bevan WMA- Whitehead Road access
Cumberland County, NJ

Very surprised to not see any anglewings. White-M was a nice early season find.

[Yes, that is our 4th earliest FOY in 13 years. One FOY on March 30 and two on April 1 previously. Good find, Steve! jc]

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Falcate Orangetip 1
  • Henry's Elfin 7
  • White M Hairstreak 1
  • Blueberry Azure 13
  • Holly Azure 3
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 9

White M Hairstreak

Tom Baxter

Dennis Creek WMA
Cape May County, NJ

sunny, around 55° F, warm in the forest, cold on the bay.

  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • American Snout 1
  • Question Mark 1

Jack Miller

Estelle Manor rd power lines s. of 49
Cumberland County, NJ

Tough for bfly people, but almost all of the powerlines in the area have been cut and had little action. This particular usual early hotspot did not show a bfly on the powercut, but there were bugs on road. There were about six Henry's that kept messing about in the top of a tall pine. All the bflys were interested in being high rather than low.

  • Henry's Elfin 11
  • Azure, sp. 4
  • Blueberry Azure 2
  • Holly Azure 1
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 1

Henry's Elfins

Tom Bailey

Palmyra Cove Nature Park
Burlington County, NJ

All sightings between 12 & 2 pm.

  • Cabbage White 2
  • Sulphur sp. 1
  • Eastern Tailed-Blue 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Sandra Keller

Bellmawr Old Landfill area
Camden County, NJ

With Annie and Marilyn - Partly sunny, 64 degrees, 6 mph north winds. My FOY for Orange Sulphur. A bit early for me.

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Orange Sulphur 2

Jack Miller

my yard Petersburg
Cape May County, NJ

While working on property I saw the yard's FOY am. copper. It patiently waited for me to get my camera.

  • Cabbage White 2
  • American Copper 1
  • Azure, sp. 1

American Copper

David L. Amadio

Glassboro WMA
Gloucester County, NJ

Obs. made from 11:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Glorious blue sky, sunshine, & mid 60's. Watched a pair of Juvenal's Duskywings rise high into the sky and then mate about 25 feet high in an oak tree. Photographed one of the Henry's Elfin with increased green scaling. Not as strongly colored as Jack Miller's from yesterday, but they do show up here further inland. Orangetips all males.

  • Cabbage White 5
  • Falcate Orangetip 3
  • Elfin sp. 2
  • Henry's Elfin 19
  • Azure, sp. 7
  • Blueberry Azure 1
  • Holly Azure 8
  • Eastern Tailed-Blue 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 4
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 2

Juvenal's Duskywing mating

Falcate Orangetip

Henry's Elfin (green accent form)

Harvey Tomlinson

Higbee Beach WMA
Cape May County, NJ

Had a few High flying, very large Azures ?

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Clouded Sulphur 1
  • Spring Azure 50
  • American Snout 3
  • Anglewing sp. 4
  • Question Mark 1
  • American Lady 1
  • Red Admiral 1
  • Juvenal's Duskywing 1

American Lady

American Snout

azures

Sam Galick

New Jersey Audubon Society's Center for Research and Education (CRE)
Cape May County, NJ

Weeding the garden and came across a few butterflies in the pleasant afternoon weather.

[Good to have our FOY variegated already, our 2nd earliest date for the species (4-4-17 only one earlier.) Good find, Sam! jc]

  • Cabbage White 2
  • American Snout 1
  • Variegated Fritillary 1
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