Edwards' Hairstreak Butterfly Census 2018

Since I don’t actually count the butterflies or produce any type of tally, my annual observations of the Edwards’ Hairstreak Butterfly can’t really be called a census.  What I do is search appropriate habitat at Blue Jay Barrens to get an idea of current size and distribution of this uncommon butterfly.

Each year, I find butterflies in new locations and in concentrations larger than the year before.

Edwards’ Hairstreak Butterflies were quite rare when I first surveyed this property 33 years ago.  It took years before I found my first specimen.  Subsequent annual searches resulted in sightings of just a few individuals or, in some years, no sightings at all.  Now I can find that many or more sharing a single flower cluster.

One of my first management projects was to make the property more suitable to Edwards’ Hairstreaks.  I cleared Eastern Red Cedar from the fields to promote prairie like habitat, and encouraged the growth of Blackjack Oak, the Edwards’ Hairstreak preferred larval food. 

As habitat improved, the number of butterflies increased.  Nectar plants also responded to the management efforts and increased in number.  Butterfly Weed, a favorite of the hairstreaks, is now common in most areas containing butterfly colonies.

A few years ago it was uncommon to see more than a single Edwards’ Hairstreak on a clump of Butterfly Weed flowers.  Now the butterflies visit the blooms in masses.  There are 10 butterflies clearly visible nectaring on Butterfly Weed in the above photo.  There are still suitable areas not yet being utilized by the butterflies, so butterfly numbers have the potential to increase for many years yet.

The above video shows some Edwards’ Hairstreak nectaring action.  A few Honeybees are also trying grab some of the nectar.  Near the end of the video, one butterfly appears to headbutt another away from his flower cluster.  This video can be viewed on YouTube by clicking HERE.

Checkered Skippers - Eternal Optimists

The Common Checkered Skipper is one of several butterfly species that appear in this area during late summer or fall.  They are residents of areas south of Blue Jay Barrens and cannot survive the cold winters we typically experience.  Taking advantage of warm summer weather, they expand their range northward, often establishing temporary populations all the way into Canada. 

Plants of the Mallow family serve as host plants for the Checkered Skipper caterpillars.  I always leave a few Common Mallow plants growing along the foundation on the south side of the house to be used by the skippers.  This area warms quickly in the sun and retains heat during the day, attracting skippers by the dozens.

I don’t normally find this species still here in November, but with temperatures well above normal and an absence of overnight freezes, the skippers are still going strong.

The prime activity of the day is reproduction.  Female Checkered Skippers are hurriedly loading the mallow leaves down with eggs.

Not a leaf has been missed.  The eggs, although fertile and numerous, have no futures.  Cold weather will soon cause the death of all life stages of this cute little creature.  New individuals will move in next summer to take another try at making this area part of their permanent range.  One day, if average temperatures continue trending upward, the Checkered Skipper could earn its place as a new year-round resident of Blue Jay Barrens.

Edwards' Hairstreak Census

The Edwards’ Hairstreak butterfly is one of the Blue Jay Barrens rarities that has been the target of many of my management activities.  Each year, in late June, I take a day to search the property for this small butterfly.  Things have changed considerably since I first found the species here more than 25 years ago.

Edwards’ Hairstreaks are strongly attracted to the orange flowers of the Butterflyweed.  Fortunately, the blooming season for this plant coincides exactly with the flight period of the butterfly.  As part of my search, I check every Butterflyweed I can find.  Last year I was impressed to find many flowers with two Hairstreaks visiting at once.  This year there were frequently three butterflies per flower head. 

Not every Butterflyweed had an attending Edwards’ Hairstreak.  The butterflies stay in close proximity to their larva food plant, Blackjack Oak.  I have been doing what I can to encourage the growth of Blackjack Oak in the fields and now have these oaks growing in several places that they had not been before.  In each of these areas, I’m now finding the Edwards’ Hairstreak butterflies.

This is the original site of the Edwards’ Hairstreak at Blue Jay Barrens.  Even here, the population size has increased through the years.  The caterpillars are generally found on the small, three to six feet tall trees.  Fortunately for the butterflies, the harsh growing conditions in this shallow soil causes the trees to die back during dry years, so the trees tend to stay perpetually short.

The butterflies are also found on and around the oaks.  Females will lay their eggs in the rough bark of the older branches of the tree.  So far, my efforts to photograph the egg laying process have been unrewarded.

Eggs hatch early in the spring and the caterpillars begin feeding on the tender, newly emerging leaves.  Later on, they feed on the larger leaves.  The evidence of their feeding remains through the summer. 

Male Edwards’ Hairstreaks select a courtship territory that they defend against other males.  Typically the territory centers around an oak that is suitable for receiving eggs.  Females entering the territory are pursued by the male in an effort to mate.  Butterfly numbers are trending upward and the territory they occupy continues to increase.  I like to think of these increases are indicators of the success of my management efforts.

I’ve included a short video of a male taking off from an oak leaf to chase away an intruder.  There were so many males in close proximity that a chase by one caused an encroachment on another’s territory, so there were often several individuals involved in the chase.  This video can also be viewed on YouTube by clicking HERE.

Spider Catches Butterfly

Buckeyes are currently the most common large butterfly species at Blue Jay Barrens. Swallowtails and Fritillaries, usually very common during the summer, have been almost nonexistent this year. I’m thinking that the never ending spring rains may have been partially responsible for this absence. Buckeyes, being migrants that move into the area from the south each summer, would have avoided any local springtime catastrophe. As a species they have thrived, but this individual met with disaster in the form of a crab spider.

It’s not unusual to see butterflies being held by crab spiders. This was a special event, because I was able to witness the action of the capture. The spider was hiding in the flowers and grabbed the butterfly when it stopped to nectar. The butterfly initially seemed stunned. A second later it suddenly took wing and pulled the spider from its perch. The spider held tight and played out line in the form of spider silk to cushion the jerking struggle of the butterfly. The event looked much like a fisherman playing a huge marlin. The pair spun circles and zipped back and forth for many seconds.

Even if it had broken free, the butterfly was finished. Upon initial capture, the spider’s first act was to inject the butterfly with paralyzing venom. After a short but violent struggle, the butterfly was subdued.

With its prey secured, the spider began to reel in line.

Once back to the flower, the spider let the line go free. It then began to arrange its prey for consumption.

The spider’s final act before settling down to feed was to conceal its body in the flower cluster. A capture like this is a common event in the prairie, but it’s not one that you very often get to witness from start to finish.

Tiger Swallowtail

When I was a kid, I considered the Tiger Swallowtail butterfly to be the King of Butterflies. It was large, colorful and abundant; all of the things that a youthful nature enthusiast could want. I spent hours chasing through the fields in hopes of getting a close up look at one of these beauties. To have a Tiger Swallowtail just sit quietly and allow itself to be admired, is something I could not have imagined back then.

The best time to view butterflies is soon after their emergence from the chrysalis. There is a period of time when the newly unfurled wings are drying, during which the butterfly will not move unless strongly provoked. This is when the colors are at their brightest and can be best enjoyed. The wings do not regenerate and as soon as the butterfly begins to forage, colorful scales will be lost and the wing edges will begin to wear. It’ll still be beautiful, but the perfection it began with will be lost.

I think I found this guy at just the right time. The tails on the hind wings have not quite completed their expansion. The colors are amazingly vivid. The blue sprinkles on the velvety black background remind me of galaxies and star clusters.

I wonder if all of those hairs help keep the body warm at night. These early emerging individuals will have to survive a few frosty nights. It’s hard to see how something that small could hold onto much heat, but I can imagine that black body capturing the last heat of a setting sun and then the wings folding over to hold that warmth for as long as possible. Sometimes there’s a very fine margin between survival and death. Maybe those hairs can give just enough advantage to make a difference.

Olive Hairstreak

It’s taken me years to get a decent photo of an Olive Hairstreak butterfly. I see them every year, but they always seem to be perched on the end of a branch that is bouncing around in the wind. To find one perched on the ground was a great stroke of luck. Even so, it changed locations twice before I could get within camera range and each time meant a methodical search before discovering its new position.

Eastern Red Cedar is the host plant for the Olive Hairstreak butterfly. There seems to be a difference of opinion as to whether or not the Olive Hairstreak prefers to use a certain sized cedar upon which to deposit its eggs. This is one of the reasons I have left stands of small to medium cedars around Blue Jay Barrens. If tree size is a factor, I’d hate to eliminate just what these beautiful butterflies need.

This individual was busy getting moisture from a gravel bar near the creek. The gravel was left behind by the flood of two weeks ago. Most likely there’re also some dissolved minerals in the water it’s drinking. Even though all of the gravel was wet, the butterfly probed around several gravel pieces before settling down to drink. That makes me think there’s something special about this particular gravel bit.

It’s unusual to have a hairstreak butterfly open its wings to show the upper surfaces. Fortunately, the spectacular patterns and flashy colors are displayed on the lower surface where they are easy to see. The hairstreaks habit of raising and lowering the hind wing in a scissor-like motion, allows you to catch a glimpse of the upper surface coloration. In this case those colors are primarily browns and oranges.

The dime sized Olive Hairstreak may appear bright and colorful up close, but it becomes very hard to see at a distance. It was hard enough to spot it as it perched on the gravel. It becomes almost invisible when it’s on a cedar tree where every color the butterfly has matches exactly a color you would find on the cedar. My next task will be to get photos of the larvae. Don’t be expecting those any time soon.

Edwards' Hairstreak Larvae

I visited some small oaks in hopes of discovering eggs of the Edwards’ Hairstreak butterfly and found a newly hatched larva instead.

With my hand in the background, you get a little better idea of the size of this newly hatched caterpillar. What I found odd was the absence of any Allegheny Mound Ants attending this little guy. Maybe they’ll be along soon.

Not much growth on these small oaks to feed a newly hatched caterpillar. The tree in the center hosted the larva, but the buds hardly looked as though they were beginning to swell.

On a second tree, I found more larvae along with their ant protectors. The larvae are busily feeding on the bud. They’ll be adults by mid-June, so their development should proceed at a fairly rapid pace.

The ants will guard the larvae and resulting pupae up to the point of adulthood. During the early stages of development, the larvae will spend most of their time on or next to the buds. At some later instar, the ants are supposed to escort the larvae to a protected area at the base of the tree for safety during daylight hours and then take them back up the tree to feed during the night. I have yet to witness this activity, but I’m going to try hard to catch it this year.

The tree doesn’t look like much, but its existence is essential for the survival of the Edwards’ Hairstreaks living in this small prairie opening. Click on Edwards’ Hairstreak from the list in the sidebar for more information on this interesting butterfly.

Chrysalis

I found this chrysalis attached to the wall outside my garage door. I’ve been checking it every time I’ve gone in or out and when I took these pictures, I thought it was nearing time for the adult butterfly to emerge. A close look reveals patterns and colors of the soon to exit butterfly.

The shape and the silk thread acting as a safety harness tell me this is a swallowtail and the vertical orientation is the standard position of a Black Swallowtail. The process of pupation in this species is really an interesting process and a bit dangerous for the butterfly. In this case, the larva created a silk pad on the wall and then moved up so its hind prolegs were on the pad. Once secured to the pad, it produced a strand of silk that circled its body and attached to the wall. After a period of rest, it began to shed its skin. The wriggling motion that moved the skin down the body also caused projections on the side of the chrysalis to catch on the silk strand. The final act was the tail end casting aside the shed skin and anchoring itself to the silk pad. Failure to properly attach to the silk harness could cause the chrysalis to miss attaching to the silken pad and cause problems in development and emergence.

I was away for about two hours and when I returned, the butterfly was gone. Nothing left by a shell.

I didn’t have to look far for the newly emerged adult. I found it at the base of the wall, sitting on a plant tray that someone hasn’t yet put away. There’s nothing more perfect looking than a freshly emerged butterfly. This is a female Black Swallowtail.

She didn’t stay around for very long. After a few minutes she took wing and headed out across the field. She doesn’t have any time to waste. Black Swallowtails overwinter in the chrysalis form, so she has to mate and lay eggs and the larvae have to grow to form a chrysalis before cold weather sets in. I hope her kids pick a more secure place to spend the winter than on the side of a house.

Puddlers

The excessive rains continue, but there are still times when some of the pond bottom is exposed. This always attracts puddling butterflies. Puddling is when butterflies sit around on damp earth and drink the mineral laden moisture from the soil. The species I most commonly see is the Eastern Tailed Blue. It’s not uncommon to find dozens of these little guys sitting at the pond’s edge.

Unlike most butterflies found around a puddle, these do not sit directly on the mud. They all sit atop pedestals formed by plant stalks or mounded vegetation. As water evaporates from the top of the pedestal, the mineral concentration in the water at that point is increased. More mineral laden water continually wicks its way up the pedestal, so the mineral content of the water in the area of evaporation becomes much higher than what would be found near the ground. The butterflies take advantage of this process to more efficiently ingest the minerals they need.

It’s primarily the small butterflies that come around the pond. Maybe the larger species are too often eaten by dragonflies or frogs. The Pearl Crescents also avoid sitting directly on the ground. They tend to sit on and drink from Chara, a form of aquatic algae.

Although it is an algae, the growth pattern of Chara makes it look much like a vascular plant having a central stalk with whorls of leaves. When minerals are present in the water, the Chara develops a calcium coating. This may also be a point of mineral concentration that gives the Pearl Crescents just what they need.

I’ve read that most puddling butterflies are males. I saw a lot of interaction between individuals, some of which was mating activity, so there must also be a few females present.

Comma

While in the woods, I decided to sit on a fallen tree for a few minutes and see what happened by. Just as I sat down, this Comma butterfly lit about three feet from my side. I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to get some good shots of a Comma. I slowly brought out my camera so as not to scare away the subject.

After a couple of shots, the Comma flew over to sit on a leaf a couple feet in front of me. This was even better. I’m endeavoring to get record shots of all organisms living at Blue Jay Barrens. A project like this would have been way too expensive in the days prior to digital cameras. As I explained to my wife when she questioned my camera purchase, if I took 500 shots, the cost of the camera would be less than the cost of film and developing using my old camera. After that, all the pictures would be free. I took those 500 shots the first weekend I had the camera. After that, I kept pointing out to my wife, until she told me to stop it, how much money I was saving with my new investment.

From the leaf, the Comma shifted to my pants leg. A little bit harder to get the right angle, but getting closer. I’ve taken pictures of commas before and have plenty of photos that clearly show that I’ve properly identified the butterfly. What I really want for each species is the perfect portrait and that’s much harder to get than a documentation photo.

Well, it’s moved closer again. It's possible to still find some of the adults that survived the winter, but an individual as crisp and clean as this must be from the first brood of the year. Photographing something on the front of my shirt makes it a bit awkward to aim the camera. One digital shot costs no more than 100, so I keep on shooting.

Now it’s starting to get too close. It flew up and began drinking sweat from the hand that’s supposed to be holding the camera. It wasn’t disturbed when I shifted the camera to the other hand. My camera isn’t designed to fit comfortably in the left hand. I had to contort my finger across the top of the camera in order to take the shot, but I think I got a shot that shows this to undeniably be a Comma.