July 2021 Sightings

FYI:

As of this morning, our South Jersey Log's list includes 81 species for 2021. We had 82 species at this time last year.

A quick review of the species with blanks so far for 2021 that we have usually found by this time in past years:

Checkered White: Recorded all years 2019-2012, sometimes not until July but missed last year, 2020 and only a single record (of five individuals) in 2019.

Harvester: Recorded all years 2020 to 2012 but some years not until July or August.

Meadow Fritillary: Recorded all years 2019-2009 but often not until July or August (not recorded at all last year, 2020).

Painted Lady (?!): Recorded all previous years of our log. Only once before have we have not recorded it by this time: 7-17-2015, our latest-ever FOY.

Other "expected" species not yet recorded in 2021 generally first appear in July or later: Giant Swallowtail, Little Yellow, Long-tailed Skipper, Fiery Skipper, Dion Skipper, Brazilian Skipper, and Ocola Skipper. And of course we can hope for some species seen in a few years but too rare to depend on: Zebra Swallowtail, Clouded Skipper, and perhaps a couple of others.

I am compiling this list hastily and may have some errors here. You can check this note and also find more details about our history of Early & Late Dates by going to our blog (https://blogs.stockton.edu/sjbfs/) and clicking on "Early & Late Dates All Years 2008-2021").

Let me know if you spot errors. I will correct this note here. Thank you!

And while I am at this, and halfway through our 14th year of this log:

A Big Thank-You to Jack Miller for sharing moderating responsibilities with me!

We would not have made it this far without him.

jc

Sunny at 77 degrees 3:30pm

75 degrees around 1:30pm

Butterfly garden only, 8:30am

Monarch larva on milkweed.

[Welcome to our newest observer/contributor, Shannon Sharp! jc]

Sunny, hot and humid. A lot of nectar here, few butterflies.

After the rains cleared out I found a Hackberry emperor. first one seen here so far this year.

With three days of rain, a brief break provided an opportunity to get out, but from 5:10pm to 5:35pm. Not expecting much, I was very surprised with the activity at the garden and immediate area. Ocola skipper is my earliest ever in NJ by more than two months!

[Excellent find! Our 2nd earliest record of Ocola and only the third time we have had our FOY before August 1. jc]

1 to 2:20 pm. Partly sunny, 68 degrees when finished. Cabbage White total is an estimate.

[Our second double-digit count of var frits in past week – this one from BUR, other from CUM. jc]

With an absence of Tiger Swallowtails in our garden since mid-June, it was lovely to see a newly emerged female. Clay spotted this full-size Monarch caterpillar on Common Milkweed. So many are preyed upon, that it is good to see some reach full size. Male Monarch going round and round, looking for a female to mate with.

Incidental sightings while birding in the park this morning.

Minimal obs. here today, but had my first adult Monarch of the year, a female laying eggs on Common & tropical Milkweed.

There is a small slip of a new pollinator garden in Mickleton Park with much of the planting to be done Spring 2022 with the help of some grants. I was excited to see that the small number of native plants there are starting to attract butterflies.

A beautifull day to accomplish the one mile loop.

Spent 2-1/2 to 3 hrs in the Salem/Mannington area this afternoon. Part sun 77-83 with about 8-10 mph southerly breeze. Lots of nectar here but little diversity.

7:30 to 12:15 pm. Mostly sunny. Less activity than previous visit.

The butterflies in the garden today were the only fireworks I needed! The Broad-winged skippers were virtually everywhere and impossible to count.

Lots of bumble bees not many butterflies. Saw some Monarch eggs on Milkweed.

12:45 to 2:30 pm. Sunny.

This is the first Monarch I have seen in our yard though my daughter saw one about a week ago. This is only the 2nd Eastern Tiger Swallowtail I have seen (the first was May 1st-over 2 months ago!).

Checked out various locations looking for 2nd flight Bronze Coppers. Did not have the time to really cover the area well, but found some nice bugs.