2015 June 23 - Red Admirals

Post date: Jun 23, 2015 6:03:18 PM

Today, Red Admirals fill the yard. It is not uncommon to see dozens at a time. They do not seem to be bothered by humans, and have sat next to me on a side table while I took a break from gardening. One even landed on my shoulder, which I thought was very Zen...until I read that they are attracted to human perspiration. They are territorial, so I expect them to stay around the garden for a few weeks. I read that they love fermented fruit nectar. They like getting a bit tipsy, which makes them even more endearing. I will put out some fruit for them today. They also prefer sap flows on trees.

Update: Driving near our home, there were hundreds of Red Admirals all over the place, many resting on the road (which made driving tricky); They seemed to like Staghorn Sumac also.

I recorded the observation @ http://vanessa.ent.iastate.edu/. The butterflies were around for several days, with highest numbers on June 24.