Mariton: Common Buckeye

The Tuesday Butterfly Walk was warm, but cloudy.  The Butterflies seemed reluctant to show themselves, so we didn’t see much variety.  We did, however, see a Common Buckeye.  This is a beautiful butterfly, that is easy to see with the naked eye.  The huge eye spots on the wings deter predation from birds and other animals.  Birds perceive the large eye spots as part of what must be a larger head, and thus a larger animal. They are pretty.

We also saw a Crossline Skipper.  This butterfly is small and its markings are subtle and very similar to other skippers.  (At least, I think it looks similar to other skippers.)  Photos by Carole Mebus.

Saturday Mariton will hold its Annual Butterfly Census at 9:00 a.m.  You are welcome to join us.  Bring binoculars, or borrow ours.  Next Tuesday is the last Butterfly Walk of the summer.  The Milkweed and Butterfly Weed should both be in bloom, so if the weather cooperates, we should have some good sightings.