North American Butterfly Association Tallahassee Butterfly Count Results

The Hairstreak Chapter of the North American Butterfly Association held a butterfly count in Tallahassee on July 22, 2007.   We wish to thank David Harder, our Chapter's compiler, for preparing the following information for our 2007 Tallahassee Butterfly Count.  Here is his report:

Despite good weather and more participants than on any previous count (12), we only managed to find 40 species and 405 individuals.  The most numerous butterfly was Gulf Fritillary (76), but many species were represented by just a single individual.  Clearly the severe spring drought depressed butterfly numbers this year.  See below for the complete list.

{sidebar id=1}Nevertheless we did have some good finds, including two species not seen on any previous counts (so far we've added something new every year).  Red Admirals (6) were seen by all three groups, and our first Great Purple Hairstreak was seen by the Tom Brown Park/Lafayette H.T. Park group.
Thanks to everyone for your skill and hard work!

A summary of the TBC's short history is shown in the following table.  Forty species seems to be the norm.  The higher 2005 numbers are anomalous, especially considering the small number of counters that year (only enough for two groups, Phipps and Southwestern).

The counters were divided into three groups covering different areas of the count circle.  Following are the species seen by only one group:

Phipps Park Group
Spring Azure
Hackberry Emperor
Golden Banded-Skipper (7)
Northern Cloudywing
Southern Cloudywing

Tom Brown Park / Lafayette H.T. Park Group
Great Purple Hairstreak
Tawny Emperor

Southwestern Group
Zebra Swallowtail
Palamedes Swallowtail
Checkered White (8)
Barred Yellow
Little Yellow
Dainty Sulphur
Gray Hairstreak

See the complete butterfly list below.  Requests for NABA 2007 National Counts Reports Deadline is August 15, 2007.  Results from all of the butterfly counts in North America will be in the spring 2008 NABA publication.  Those who participated in the count may request the Report at this time by sending $6.00 (NABA member) or $10.00 (non-member) to David Harder by August 15.  Please mail cash or a check made out to NABA Hairstreak Chapter along with your mailing address to:

David Harder
2304-C Columbia Court
Tallahassee, FL 32304

Non-counters may still purchase the Counts Report directly from the NABA on-line store next spring. 

Complete 2007 Tallahassee Butterfly Count Results
July 22, 2007
40 species
405 individuals

Pipevine Swallowtail 3
Zebra Swallowtail 3
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 14
Spicebush Swallowtail 12
Palamedes Swallowtail 5
Checkered White 8 (along Capital Circle SW)
Cloudless Sulphur 12
Barred Yellow 3
Little Yellow 1
Sleepy Orange 23
Dainty Sulphur 1
Great Purple Hairstreak 1 New species for count
Gray Hairstreak 1
Red-banded Hairstreak 4
Spring Azure 1
Gulf Fritillary 76
Zebra Heliconian 6
Variegated Fritillary 18
Pearl Crescent 3
Red Admiral 6 New species for count
Common Buckeye 18
Red-spotted Purple 4
Viceroy 8
Hackberry Emperor 1
Tawny Emperor 1
Carolina Satyr 6
Silver-spotted Skipper 15
Long-tailed Skipper 10
Golden Banded-Skipper 7
Southern Cloudywing 1
Northern Cloudywing 2
Horace's Duskywing 39
Zarucco Duskywing 11
Common/White Checkered-Skipper 30
Tropical Checkered-Skipper 21
Clouded Skipper 3
Fiery Skipper 14
Whirlabout 4
Zabulon Skipper 3 (each group saw 1)
Dun Skipper 6

Choctaw Chapter Butterfly Count at Florida Caverns State Park

Below are the results of the butterfly count conducted by the Choctaw Chapter at Florida Caverns State Park on June 9.  Fifty-one species and 447 individuals were counted.  One hundred forty of the individuals sighted were Pearl Crescents.

Pipevine Swallowtail 3
Black Swallowtail 1
Giant Swallowtail 4 (6 larvae on Ptelea trifoliata)
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 3
Spicebush Swallowtail 4
Palamedes Swallowtail 4
Checkered White 13
Cabbage White 5
Southern Dogface 1
Cloudless Sulphur 7
Little Yellow 1
Sleepy Orange 18
Great Purple Hairstreak 1
King's Hairstreak 1
'Olive' Juniper Hairstreak 2
Red-banded Hairstreak 15
'Summer' Spring Azure 12
American Snout 5
Gulf Fritillary 3
Variegated Fritillary 17
Silvery Checkerspot 5
'Texan' Texan Crescent 1
Pearl Crescent 140
Question Mark 1
American Lady 2
Painted Lady 1
Common Buckeye 45
Red-spotted Purple 11
Viceroy 2
Hackberry Emperor 26
Tawny Emperor 4
Southern Pearly-eye 1
Gemmed Satyr 3
Carolina Satyr 10
Little Wood-Satyr 3
Silver-spotted Skipper 4
Long-tailed Skipper 1
Southern Cloudywing 1
Horace's Duskywing 18
Zarucco Duskywing 3
Common/White Checkered-Skipper 5
Tropical Checkered-Skipper 18
Clouded Skipper 1
Least Skipper 1
Southern Skipperling 2
Fiery Skipper 7
Whirlabout 5
Southern Broken-Dash 1
Northern Broken-Dash 1
Byssus Skipper 1
Eufala Skipper 3

 
Billy B. Boothe, President
Hairstreak Chapter
North American Butterfly Association
P. O. Box 715
Bristol, FL 32321
(850)643-2583
NABA@NatureInFocus.com

 
‘‘Happiness is a butterfly which when pursued is just beyond your grasp ...
but if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.’’ - Nathaniel Hawthorne

This information originally published on August 7, 2007.
 

Written by :

mkwestmark

 

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