THE POLLINATOR STUDY:
Butterflies

Butterfly Common in Tree Fields with Flowering Groundcovers

eastern tail-blue on Fraser fir

Butterflies were commonly seen in Christmas tree fields, especially in the fall. The most common butterflies observed were swallowtails, sulphurs and whites, eastern tail-blue, and meadow fritillaries. The silver-spotted skipper and hobomok skipper were also common. Less common were painted ladies, Gulf coast fritillary, red admirals, and Monarchs.

 

 

 

 

 

Butterfly Gallery

The following are photographs of common butterflies taken in Fraser fir fields and field borders during the study. Butterflies commonly seen were found in at least four of the study sites. Those less commonly seen are indicated below.

swallowtail on thistle
Swallowtails were one of the most common butterflies observed,
especially where field borders or field roads were allowed to grow up.
They were particularly attracted to thistles.

 

meadow fritillary butterfly
Meadow fritillaries are a common small butterfly seen in Fraser fir fields.

 

cloudless sulphur butterfly
Another common butterfly is the cloudless sulphur.

 

eastern tail-blue butterfly
The eastern blue-tail is frequently seen in Christmas tree fields.

 

common cabbage white butterfly
Cabbage white butterflies were also common.

 

hobomok skipper butterfly
The hobomok skipper was found in several fields.

 

silver-spotted skipper butterfly
The silver-spotted skipper was less common than some, but still frequently found.

 

painted lady butterfly
Painted lady butterflies were also found, though not as frequently as others.

 

Monarch butterfly in Fraser fir field border
Monarch butterflies were seen in a couple of sites later in the fall.

 

Monarch butterfly caterpillar in Fraser fir field border
This Monarch caterpillar was observed at the Alleghany County farm
that happened to have a lot of milkweed.

 

gulf coast fritillary butterfly
The gulf coast fritillary butterfly was only found at one site.

 

 

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Written by Jill R. Sidebottom, Ph.D., Area Extension Forestry Specialist, Mountain Conifer IPM
Web Crafters: Anne S. Napier and Jill R. Sidebottom
Email: jill_sidebottom@ncsu.edu

November 7, 2012