Joe Budd Wildlife Management Area (WMA) field trip:  Sunday, August 14th

This is our chapter’s first summer field trip to Joe Budd WMA just west of Tallahassee and will be exploratory in nature.

The primary natural communities in this WMA are upland pine and hardwood forests and bottomland and floodplain forests.  We have seen Hoary Edge here in the spring and a good variety of butterflies in late summer.  We hope to find swallowtails and sulphurs and should have a chance to see many of the spreadwing and grass skippers found in these natural communities.  Of course, we will also keep an eye out for rare and unusual species.

To carpool from Tallahassee, meet at 8:30 AM at the Florida DEP building parking lot on Commonwealth Boulevard, near the intersection of I-10 and Capital Circle Northwest.  Be sure to bring close-focusing binoculars, insect repellent, water, and a lunch.  If you have questions, please contact Eric Shaw at eshaw@rocketmail.com or call him at (850) 668-2371.

Hairstreak Chapter Annual Meeting and Potluck:  Saturday, August 27th

Please join us for our chapter’s annual meeting and potluck on Saturday, August 27th at the Birdsong Nature Center in southern Georgia, just four miles north of the Florida state line. Species to expect in the Birdsong butterfly garden include Hoary Edge, cloudywings, and several kinds of swallowtails.  This beautiful property is always an excellent place for photography.

The function will begin at 10:00 AM EST. You are welcome to explore the butterfly garden upon your arrival.  You may also walk some of the nature trails for more butterflies and dragonflies.

The potluck will begin at 12:00 EST.  Please bring a salad, main dish, or a dessert to share.   You may wish to bring a folding lawn chair as well.

Following lunch, we will have a meeting to review our chapter’s accomplishments this past year and to plan for the coming one.  We will elect officers for 2011 - 2012.  The nominations committee, composed of chairperson Marty Quinn, Virginia Craig, and Karen MacClendon, has proposed the following slate:

President - Sally Jue
Vice-president - Eric Shaw
Treasurer - Ying Wang
Secretary - Dean Jue

Members who wish to nominate additional candidates for any office can contact Marty at jimq@nettally.com or by phone at (850) 877-2427.

For those of you who enjoy butterfly photography, there will be an opportunity to share photos after the meeting.  Bring your digital images or videos on a USB key or a CD-ROM.  We will conclude our get-together around 3:00 PM EST.

If you have questions about the meeting or potluck, please contact Dean and Sally Jue at dsjue@embarqmail.com or (850) 386-1393.  To carpool from Tallahassee, meet at 9:15 AM near Applebee's at the corner of Village Square Blvd. and Thomasville Rd. just north of I-10.  Or you can join us at Birdsong Nature Center at 10:00 AM (see the website http://www.birdsongnaturecenter.org/ for directions).   There is a $5 admission fee if you are not a member of Birdsong.

Upcoming Chapter Events

On Saturday, September 10th, we will explore the Snipe Island Unit of Big Bend Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Taylor County.  In the past, Big Bend WMA field trips have rewarded us with the highest butterfly diversity seen in our area, especially during the fall.

On Sunday, September 25th, we will take our first chapter field trip to Tate’s Hell State Forest in Franklin County.  Scouting in this area last year produced Berry’s Skipper and Dion Skipper in addition to many of the more common butterfly species.  With some rain between now and then, the wildflowers should be spectacular.

Report on the Wacissa River field trip - Sunday, June 26

Eleven field trip participants in five canoes and one kayak enjoyed a leisurely paddle from the Wacissa River headwaters down to Goose Pasture.  In addition to beautiful serene scenery and abundant wading birds, we observed six species of butterflies, including four Seminole Texan Crescents and over 20 Least Skippers.   More than a dozen species of odonates were seen along the river, including several Dragonhunters, many Two-striped Forceptails, and numerous Smoky Rubyspots.

Report on the Birdsong Nature Center field trip - Saturday, July 9

We spent a relaxing morning observing butterflies flying and nectaring in the lovely Birdsong butterfly garden.  Field trip participants saw 20 butterfly species, including four kinds of swallowtails, Southern Dogface, Hoary Edge, and eight other species of skippers.  Our walk down to the pond provided great views of several species of dragonflies, including a Banded Pennant and Golden-winged Skimmers

Report on the Tallahassee Butterfly Count - Saturday, July 23

Fourteen enthusiastic count participants spent a total of 29 party hours walking 11 party miles to find 40 species of butterflies and count a total of 476 individuals.  Like many other NABA counts in Florida this year, number of species and individuals were on the low side, undoubtedly due to the drought we had during the spring and early summer.  Although we found “only” 34 Golden Banded-Skippers (compared to 85 last July), we added two new species to our count list:  Little Glassywing (seen by 2 different parties) and Dion Skipper (also a first record for Leon County).  This brings the total recorded over the eight years of the Tallahassee Count to 71 species!

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