March 2021 Sightings

Mike Hannisian

Beaver Dam WMA
Cape May County, NJ

Near beginning of dirt road.

  • Spring Azure 2

Spring Azure

Mike Hannisian

Makepeace WMA
Atlantic County, NJ

Dirt road on southeast side of the lake.

  • Spring Azure 10

Spring Azure

Spring Azure

Jesse & Jack Connor

Our yard in Port Republic
Atlantic County, NJ

Our first butterfly of the year on 3-26-21 and our first box turtle to emerge from hibernation on 3-27-21.

  • Cabbage White 1

box turtle emerging

Tom Bailey

Palmyra Cove Nature Park
Burlington County, NJ

Incidental sightings while birding in the park today.

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Eastern Comma 5

Mike Hannisian

Bevans WMA @ Gravelly Run
Cumberland County, NJ

  • Spring Azure 3
  • Question Mark 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 3

Spring Azure

Eastern Comma

Question Mark

Mourning Cloak

Cynthia Allen

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

The M. Cloak flew through the yard around 4:20 PM when high clouds had moved in and the temperature had dropped to 61.

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jack Miller

intersection of Perry rd and rt 50
Cape May County, NJ

A small patch of roadside weeds was the attraction.

  • Cabbage White 2
  • Orange Sulphur 1

Dolores Amesbury

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

Mourning Cloaks nectaring on Red Maple flowers. Henry’s Elfin earliest record for our yard.

  • Cabbage White 2
  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 2

Mike Hannisian

Bear Swamp WMA
Cumberland County, NJ

South of RR tracks and east of CR 555.

  • Spring Azure 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Spring Azure

David L. Amadio

Riverwinds Scenic Trail
Gloucester County, NJ

I find every spring azure sighting here in northern Glouco to be special. In my experience they are quite uncommon. I was afforded only a brief encounter with this one today. I was able to fire off several shots at a distance and then it lost me in the woods. Because of the scarcity of early Celastrinas in this area I will label this one as azure sp. I may have Will Kerling run this one by David Wright for his opinion. Any other opinions are certainly welcome as well.

  • Cabbage White 2
  • Azure, sp. 1

Azure, sp.

Karen & Brian Johnson

Peaslee WMA on first Ave.
Atlantic County, NJ

We walked the first 1/2 mile at midday. The Elfin flushed before I could get a picture.

  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • Blueberry Azure 15
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Eastern Comma 1

Jack McDonough

Narrows Road, Belleplain
Cape May County, NJ

Around 3pm - lots of Blueberry Azures out today. I saw 2 at Beaver Dam, 1 in my backyard in Dennisville, and three more individuals on Narrows Road. One of the undersides of the hindwing on the snout was very ornate and the other hindwing was completely plain, which I thought was cool and interesting. The snout was also on Narrows road, by the current puddles in the first major bend from Sunset.

[Apologies to Jack McD for my misreading of his report and my original comment yesterday assuming that he was describing two individuals. My brain couldn't deal with what he was saying. We have exchanged some emails since and he has underlined that it was a single individual!

Lepidopterist Art Shapiro noted (in Butterflies Of The Delaware Valley) that ventral pattern differences in snout are "clearly genetic" and differ from individual to individual (i.e. like hair or eye color in humans). Do we have something here like a human w/two differently colored eyes? I need to do more researching. Has anyone out there ever seen a similar snout – with one ventral showing the "plain" pattern and the other the "striated" pattern?! At the moment, this strikes me as a remarkable find!

Congratulations and thanks to Jack McDonough for the careful observation, diligent photography, and patience with my original error. jc]

  • Blueberry Azure 3
  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1

American Snout "plain form"side

American Snout "striated form" side

Blueberry Azure

Chris Herz

Tall Pines State Preserve, Sewell
Gloucester County, NJ

Mourning Cloak nectaring on red maple flowers

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Harvey Tomlinson

My Del Haven Garden
Cape May County, NJ

We did NOT spray the Dandelions this Spring and it paid off. Had a Anglewing sp. stop to check them out then shortly after a Cabbage White. It jumped from flower to flower and then discovered the blooming Primrose. The local bunnies also like the dandelions so it's a Win Win!

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1

Jack Miller

my yard Petersburg
Cape May County, NJ

Worked in the yard all morning and while reviewing my accomplishments, I was visited by my yard's FOY.

[Nice! Our log's first for the year and ties Dave Amadio's record FOY set just last year. jc]

  • American Copper 1

American Copper

Jack Miller, Emily Peyton, and Rick Cech

MacNamara WMA
Cape May County, NJ

Late afternoon and mid low 60's. While searching for Henry's, I was surprised to find a Rick Cech! A couple of years ago, we met for the first time within 10 yds of where we met today. Of note: Last year on March 26 Harvey and I saw over 100 Henry's at Belleplain. Where are the Henry's?

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Blueberry Azure 2

Blueberry Azure

Tom Bailey

Franklin Parker Preserve
Burlington County, NJ

The Goodwater section of the preserve just east of Chatsworth. Cloudy & temperature about 65 degrees. Wasn't expecting to see any b'flies today. One of the azures kept flying around me and then eventually landed on my boot. After a few minutes it started flying around again so I walked about 5 feet away and stood still and it eventually returned and landed on my boot again at the same spot. I think this is the "Lucia" form?

[Yes, azures test our sense of species – and our faith in our ability to ID the several forms and/or sister species. These two photos fit the form/species that we have been calling "blueberry azure" on our log. The "lucia" patch is dark and evident in each, as are the dark trailing edges of both forewing and hindwing, and the duskiness of the lighter areas on both fw and hw. David Wright and Harry Pavulaan call this butterfly Celastrina lucia. If blueberry azure is a species and can be identified, this is one, in my humble opinion. However, also imho, it's clearly ok to call these spring azures. "Spring azure" has become a term that covers a mix of forms and possibly full species. See Lep Log for more discussions of this extremely complicated complex. jc]

  • Spring Azure 2

Spring Azure

Spring Azure

Jack McDonough

East Creek Trail, Belleplain SP
Cape May County, NJ

Around 12:20pm

  • Henry's Elfin 3
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Henry's Elfin

Henry's Elfin

Clay Sutton

Belleplain State Forest
Cape May County, NJ

  • Azure, sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 4

Jesse & Jack Connor

Our yard in Port Republic
Atlantic County, NJ

  • Cabbage White 2

Jack McDonough

Narrows Road, Belleplain
Cape May County, NJ

Around 12:00pm 60 degrees. Wild to see a Mourning Cloak feeding on a fish (probably a menhaden) dropped and left by an Osprey.

  • Henry's Elfin 2
  • Blueberry Azure 3
  • Eastern Comma 2
  • Mourning Cloak 2

Mourning Cloak on fish

Eastern Comma

Jennifer Bulava

Rancocas State Park, Mt Laurel
Burlington County, NJ

Hike from about 2-3:30pm

  • Cabbage White 4
  • Spring Azure 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 2

Eastern Comma

Jennifer Bulava

Historic Smithville Park, Eastampton
Burlington County, NJ

in parking lot at 12:40pm

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Eastern Comma 1

Chip Krilowicz

Wharton SF, Waterford
Camden County, NJ

  • Cabbage White 1
  • Spring Azure 3
  • Eastern Comma 2
  • Mourning Cloak 3

Eastern Comma

Mourning Cloak

Pat Sutton

Sutton GDN in Goshen
Cape May County, NJ

  • Cabbage White 1

Cynthia Allen

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

I also went to Belleplain SF/Tom Field Rd. but saw no butterflies. Bee flies are out, plus I got a tick.

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jennifer Bulava

Laurel Run Park, Delran
Burlington County, NJ

my FOY sulphur

  • Sulphur sp. 1

Mike Hannisian

Makepeace Lake WMA
Atlantic County, NJ

  • Spring Azure 6

Spring Azure

Steven Glynn

Bevan WMA- Whitehead Road access
Cumberland County, NJ

  • Henry's Elfin 2
  • Blueberry Azure 2
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1
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