March 2023 Sightings

Jack Miller

Makepeace Lake
Atlantic County, NJ

[This is our earliest record for blueberry azure in Atlantic County in more than ten years (since 2-27-12). Good find! jc]

  • Blueberry Azure 1

Blueberry Azure

Pat Sutton

Beaver Swamp WMA
Cape May County, NJ

Both were uncooperative for photos. Perched on sand road (road almost undriveable due to heavy illegal ATV use).

  • Azure, sp. 1
  • American Snout 1

Scott McConnell

Ockie Wisting Recreation Complex
Cape May County, NJ

Clear, mid-50s, W breeze 12 m/h; 2.5km, 2.3 hrs.

  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 4

Mike Kaliss

Black Run Preserve
Burlington County, NJ

Mostly sunny day. Low 50's. Around 12 noon. 2 Mourning Cloaks in upland Pine-Oak forest

[Welcome to our South Jersey Butterfly Project, Mike Kaliss! jc]

  • Mourning Cloak 2

Mourning Cloak

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Clear, temp mid-50s, wind W 12mph. One MOCL on Mid Twp. bike path in morning; all others on walk through woodlots, 1410–1520, 1 km. Snouts fluttering up together, perching by each other, but no mating observed.

  • American Snout 2
  • Eastern Comma 3
  • Mourning Cloak 5

American Snout

Karen & Brian Johnson

Bellplain state forest
Cape May County, NJ

Midday drive around sand roads north of Rt. 550. Nice to see so many MC.

[Yes! That is a good-to-see high count! jc]

  • Blueberry Azure 2
  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 16

Mourning Cloak

Blueberry Azure

Kathy Horn

Cox Hall Cr WMA
Cape May County, NJ

Sunny, 46
Sure was nice to see some butterflies on these protected woods paths!

[Yes! jc]

  • American Snout 1
  • Mourning Cloak 2

American Snout

American Snout

Clay Sutton

Corbin City WMA
Atlantic County, NJ

48 degrees. All seen in 1/2 hour between 12:30 and 1:30 pm. 4 in sight at once.

[It's a mourning cloak year so far – with more reports and higher counts than usual. Our 2023 count of individuals is already 50+ which tops the totals for the full year of two recent down years: 2019 (47) and 2018 (43). Was it the mild weather that enabled more survival this winter – or something last summer that increased breeding success? jc]

  • Mourning Cloak 5

Mourning Cloak

Mourning Cloak

Mourning Cloak

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Clear, wind W 10, mid-50s. Same time, place, and conditions as yesterday, but far fewer butterflies.

  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Eastern Comma

Harrison Hepding, Jonathan Layman, Tom Reed

Coral Ave. dune crossing, Cape May Point
Cape May County, NJ

Mourning Cloak flying around dunes at 11:05am. Sunny, 41ºF, wind NNW 10-15mph.

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Pat & Clay Sutton

Pine Swamp Road (Belleplain State Forest)
Cape May County, NJ

52 degrees. Flushed from the road. 2 were chasing each other high overhead.

  • Mourning Cloak 5

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Clear, low 50s, little breeze. 600m walk through woods, ~1 hr. in late afternoon. A comparison of one of the commas (attached) with the one I posted on 3/6 from the same location indicates it is the same individual. Today it fluttered up/chased a nearby snout several times.

  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 3

Eastern Comma

American Snout

Jack Miller

my yard Petersburg
Cape May County, NJ

Midday fly through.

[Our first cabbage white of 2023 – and 6th species for the year. Good find, jm! jc]

  • Cabbage White 1

Chris Herz

Glassboro WMA, Clayton
Gloucester County, NJ

54 degrees to start at 1 pm.–warmed to 58 degrees. Carpenter entrance to nowhere road. 2nd Azure had dark margin.

[Our first bf report from GLO in 2023. Good to see! jc]

  • Spring Azure 2
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 2
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Mourning Cloak

Spring Azure

David L. Amadio

Riverwinds River Trail & Community center
Gloucester County, NJ

Obs. made from 12:15 to 1 p.m., 60 degrees and filtered sun. Only a couple of flowering trees here but they were enough to attract many bees and several butterflies. Photographed high in the trees.

[Our first red admiral of 2023 – and 7th species for the year. Good find, Dave. jc]

  • Eastern Comma 4
  • Red Admiral 1

Red Admiral

Eastern Comma

Jeanine Apgar

Old Port Republic Trail
Atlantic County, NJ

56 degrees and winds 13 mph , afternoon.

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Mourning Cloak

Robert C. Koch

Lumberton Leas on Creek Rd. Lumberton, NJ
Burlington County, NJ

First butterflies seen at Lumberton Leas this year. Cabbage White on my neighbor's lawn, Mourning Cloak (in flight) and Anglewing sp. (in leaf litter) on woodland trails.

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

Pat Sutton

Woodcock Trail Spur thru woods (Cape May NWR)
Cape May County, NJ

5 pm, flew up from woodland path!

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Mid-50s, S breeze; 600m walk in woodlot, ~1/2 hr. Close examination of comma photo indicates a different individual than the one that was present at same location 3/6 & 3/16.

  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Question Mark 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Eastern Comma

Jennifer Bulava

Arney's Mount Park, Springfield Twp
Burlington County, NJ

2:00-3:30pm. Sunny and 62 degrees, windy. Mourning Cloak was flying through the woods and the sulphur was far out in the fields.

[Our first sulphur for 2023. jc]

  • Sulphur sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Dolores Amesbury

My yard in CMCH
Cape May County, NJ

Sunny, upper 50’s. One of the Mourning Cloaks was favoring Red Maple blossoms.

  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 3

Eastern Comma

Jennifer Bulava

Amico Island, Delran
Burlington County, NJ

1 Mourning Cloak in flight on blue trail around noon. Sunny and near 60 degrees.

  • Mourning Cloak 1

Jack Miller

Estell Manor Rd
Cumberland County, NJ

The comma was still babbling "that was too close!"

A note about snouts: When combined with reports from the last 3 winters, this winter has made a convincing argument that snouts are firmly entrenched as a winter resident in at least CMY and CUM. I saw my first snout (2 in fact) this year on 2/10 at Narrows Rd Belleplain. Since then, I have seen them in CMY at Beaver Dam Rd, Old Robbins Rd, and Lizard Tail, and Dennisville rr; and Estell Manor Rd in CUM. What used to be a rarely seen species in winter is now one of our most dependable warm day in February butterflies. I wonder how far north their line was this winter?

The brightness of the azure sp inspired me to track after it for a photo. It is bright but the duskiness of the inner wing and the trailing margin led me to suspect it was probably an odd blueberry.

[Thank you, Jack, for the snout notes and for inspiring us to dive into the annual puzzle of trying to separate the different azures. For more about this tough challenge – tough even for sharp-eyed veterans like JM – go to our blog at:
https://blogs.stockton.edu/sjbfs/2021/05/02/five-ways-of-understanding-south-jerseys-azures/
jc]

  • Azure, sp. 1
  • Blueberry Azure 4
  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 2
  • Question Mark 3
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 7

Eastern Comma

Azure, sp.

Jack Miller

Dennisville rr
Cape May County, NJ

Brief stop around 2:00.

  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Clay Sutton

Pine Swamp Road (Belleplain State Forest)
Cape May County, NJ

1:15 pm

  • Mourning Cloak 5

Pat Sutton

Songbird Trail, Cape May NWR (Kimbles Beach Road)
Cape May County, NJ

Flushed it; no photo opps

  • Anglewing sp. 1

Jennifer Bulava

Historic Smithville Park, Eastampton
Burlington County, NJ

Around 2pm on the edge of the butterfly garden - my FOY cabbage white.

  • Cabbage White 1

Jesse Connor

Our yard in Port Republic
Atlantic County, NJ

flyby.

  • Cabbage White 1

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Partly sunny, temp in 60s, little wind. 200m walk through woods, ~25 mins.

  • Spring Azure 1
  • American Snout 2
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 2
  • Mourning Cloak 1

Scott McConnell

Whitesboro
Cape May County, NJ

Clear, upper 50s, wind W 10. 650m walk in afternoon, mostly in woods, ~45 mins.

[Three reports of Henry's today – two from CMY and one from CUM. Exciting to see. jc]

  • Henry's Elfin 1
  • Spring Azure 1
  • American Snout 1
  • Anglewing sp. 1
  • Eastern Comma 1
  • Mourning Cloak 3

Henry's Elfin

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