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Post by coloradeo on Feb 7, 2019 5:47:58 GMT
Perhaps not as exotic as some, but for me, the right place at the right time. Really, the right lucky swing at the right time.
A few years ago at the Lepidopterists Society collecting trip in Colorado, I was standing in the parking area off a road near Cripple Creek, Colorado with the folks who had just collected at one of the first field trip sites we attended. I had caught some nice Speyeria at the site other Nymphalidae, so it was a nice spot. I was chatting while we decided to head next and I turned my head a bit. Out of the corner of my eye saw something about to fly over my head, so I instinctively swung the net toward the sky and came down with a perfect Hemileuca nuttalli, the first I had collected. I would not have been able to even guess at what it was from the glance I had as it came toward me, so it was indeed a nice surprise. I did not hear that anyone else caught H nuttalli that day.
Eric
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Post by trehopr1 on Feb 7, 2019 7:08:16 GMT
Thank you John for sharing those interesting tales with us. Your first story regarding the hairstreak species is very similar to my above post about my friend capturing Phoebis on a lone flowering tree in the everglades during a dry spell.
It kind of sounds like your medium -sized satyr's in the 2nd story were perhaps utilizing some sort of a natural "flyway" such as a ravine or creek bed or something of the sort to repeatedly pop out at right about the same place near the road.
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Post by trehopr1 on Feb 7, 2019 7:49:02 GMT
Ah' yes coloradeo, the "lucky swing with the net in a fleeting moment" scenario. I am familiar with this scenario myself and it is indeed a rare moment in the life.
The last time it happened to me was about 5 years ago in early May. It was my first outing of the year and I was skirting the edge of a nearby park. A long wooden fence-line began to stretch ahead separating several private properties from the park grounds. As I proceeded to walk along the stretch I turned my head to glimpse the sunlit park and then as I looked back ahead so I could see my footing; out of the corner of my eye a Tiger Swallowtail "popped up" literally over the fence and within 3 feet of me.
I simply "reacted" in that moment and would up netting an ex-pupa "spring form" P. glaucus male. I had not even seen a spring form specimen in a dog's age much less a freshly hatched one. It seemed almost a "gift" as I neither saw or collected anything else that particular early spring morning....
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chrisw
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 58
Country: USA
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Post by chrisw on Feb 7, 2019 18:41:55 GMT
My first collecting trip to Arizona in 2014 was very much being at the right place at the right time. I took, my then, 17 year old son along. We didn't know what to expect other than it would be better than any night collecting we had done anywhere in Wisconsin. We were told to go to 3 key spots to collect. We didn't care what we were going to collect, but were hoping to come away with Dyschemia howardi, Eupackardia calleta, & Rothschildia cincta. Those spots were Copper Canyon, California Gulch & Harshaw. We went to the 3 spots in consecutive nights and made a haul. We came home with over 500 specimens and at least 200 different species. We came home with all the major Saturnids & Shpingids from the area including Sphinx smithii. That was an awesome trip.
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Post by exoticimports on Feb 7, 2019 20:28:08 GMT
Easter morning, San Christobal Island, Solomon Islands: I rose with the sun and headed out for the day (or more.) Ten minutes down the road, near the airport, I stopped at a flowering hedge bordering a yard. The morning sun had just broken above the canopy, and a ray of light shone onto the hedge right in front of me, as one would see in a medieval religious painting.
A fast butterfly dropped from high out of the sun and landed on the flowering shrub right in front of me. Graphium codrus christobalus, bright flashes of green buzzing. I caught it- a fresh, absolutely perfect specimen. I had never before, nor since, seen another.
Chuck
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Post by jmg on Feb 8, 2019 0:24:25 GMT
I captured a Graphium codrus (at this moment, can not remember the subspecies) in the Togian archipelago (Sulawesi), on the sea shore. It was not perfect. Nevertheless, I was satisfied: it was my first and only encounter with this taxon.
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Post by exoticimports on Feb 8, 2019 16:19:44 GMT
I captured a Graphium codrus (at this moment, can not remember the subspecies) in the Togian archipelago (Sulawesi), on the sea shore. It was not perfect. Nevertheless, I was satisfied: it was my first and only encounter with this taxon.
My experience with codrus is that it prefers the canopy and forest edges. It will come down to feed, and on several occasions I've seen two individuals physically interact (fight?) in flight- not scare like ulysses is prone to do, or bump like nymphalids will, but lock together like eagles. I cannot say if these are same sex fights or pairs attempting some sort of mating (anybody know?) In two cases the "fighting" pair of codrus plummeted to earth; in one case I captured one individual, but the other escaped, and with it my chance to determine if they are same sex or not.
Anyway, despite my observation that codrus prefers canopy, I have a series taken on Tetepare island that were all taken in dense secondary growth (scrub trees) in a ravine near the seaside. Not surprisingly, they are all beat. That means, of course, that this is off topic from the "right place right time" since though the place was right, clearly the fact that there were so many individuals and they had been beat up for a long time indicates that it wasn't a one-off event for them.
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Post by Adam Cotton on Feb 8, 2019 17:12:25 GMT
It will come down to feed, and on several occasions I've seen two individuals physically interact (fight?) in flight- not scare like ulysses is prone to do, or bump like nymphalids will, but lock together like eagles. I cannot say if these are same sex fights or pairs attempting some sort of mating (anybody know?) In two cases the "fighting" pair of codrus plummeted to earth; in one case I captured one individual, but the other escaped, and with it my chance to determine if they are same sex or not. I suspect that they were courting pairs. In NW Laos I observed two Graphium behaving similarly and they fell to the ground just in front of me, so I was able to put my net over them and catch them both. It was a pair of G. evemon albociliatus, and as a result of the capture I was able to confirm that the specimen illustrated as a female Graphium eurypylus in Osada et al. 1999(An Illustrated Checklist of the Butterflies of Laos P. D. R.) was actually G. evemon. Adam.
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Post by jshuey on Feb 11, 2019 21:18:06 GMT
In the spirit of this topic, I will tell you about a place that is always the right place - regardless of the time. The Outlier Peak in Belize. The very first time we visited the site, I set a bait trap as we neared the summit, and an Agrias aedon rodriguezi landed on the side of the trap while I was placing the bait in it. As it turns out, we've seen this species every time we visited the Outlier. This Agrias has a mimic, and the only place in Belize we have ever seen it is on the Outlier. In the intense tropical sunlight – it is almost impossible to tell Siderone syntyche syntyche from Agrias aedon as they zoom around at warp speed - electric blue and red. To see this amazing and rare mimic go to : www.butterfliesofamerica.com/L/imagehtmls/Nymph/Siderone_syntyche_syntyche_M_BELIZE_Stann_Creek_District_Cockscomb_Outlier_Peak_20-VII-05_JS1_i.htmIn short, this "hill top" is the hottest collecting spot in all of Belize, and we expect to find new species for the country every time we visit the Outlier. It takes 3-4 hours to hike there, and the last kilometer is a serious vertical hike. The peak rises above the adjacent forest, and the ridge supports a very short, scrub forest on top. So, like you see in the photo below, you can literally pick bugs off the top of the highest trees within an intact forest that goes for miles and miles. If you want to access the western part of the peak – you actually do stuff on a cliff face that you can’t tell your wife about (or she’ll never let you go back again). On the poster - the western peak is that knobby hill in the background. We usually take camping gear and spend a night so that we can collect most of two days (Parides childrenae flies in the area we set up our hammocks in). We did a poster a few years ago about the site for a meeting - and if you blow it up, you can see it here: www.researchgate.net/publication/276119544_The_Outlier_Peak_in_Cockscomb_Basin_Belize_-_Small_mountain_large_contribution_to_the_fauna_of_BelizeJohn Attachments:
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mosca1
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 81
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Post by mosca1 on Feb 12, 2019 4:38:16 GMT
I've just returned from searching for P. godeffroyi for the very last time. Certainly at the right spot at the right time! One of the few butterflies that can still make me weak at the knees!
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Post by Adam Cotton on Feb 12, 2019 11:21:01 GMT
Sounds like you had fun ... but why the last time?
One question that I am curious about, I remember reading that Pacific island Papilio species do not mud puddle, if so how do you collect them in good quality? I would think that if they can only be collected at flowers most of them would be damaged.
Adam.
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mosca1
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 81
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Post by mosca1 on Feb 12, 2019 20:19:39 GMT
Sounds like you had fun ... but why the last time? One question that I am curious about, I remember reading that Pacific island Papilio species do not mud puddle, if so how do you collect them in good quality? I would think that if they can only be collected at flowers most of them would be damaged. Adam. New horizons . You are right Adam, most of the specimens at flowers are damaged. Especially females. In my experience the key to good quality Pacific Island Papilio specimens is to wait in an area where the host plant is abundant. This way newly emerged specimens can often be collected taking their first flight. Or even just before taking their first flight! By checking carefully early in the morning I have often found butterflies still drying their wings. Males (both fresh and flown) regularly visit looking for freshly emerged females to mate with and (fresh) females generally don't stray too far from where they oviposit. Once they stray looking for nectar this is when they become damaged, particularity when pursued by males. This strategy explains why my male/female ratio tends to be pretty balanced. Knowing the host plant and pinpointing where it grows most abundantly is of course essential. As is knowing the best months to search. Unlike in many parts of the Neotropics, for example, Pacific Island Papilio can be very seasonal. Patience is also key. Many a time I have spent an entire day waiting to collect just one perfect example! Laurie
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Post by Adam Cotton on Feb 13, 2019 18:17:30 GMT
Any idea why Pacific Island Papilios don't mud puddle? There must be a reason, as they do almost everywhere else, even in temperate climates.
Adam.
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Post by exoticimports on Feb 15, 2019 1:39:09 GMT
I've just returned from searching for P. godeffroyi for the very last time. Certainly at the right spot at the right time! One of the few butterflies that can still make me weak at the knees!
Interesting! I've spent quite a bit of time on Tutuila, and never saw the species.
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Post by exoticimports on Feb 15, 2019 1:54:19 GMT
Sounds like you had fun ... but why the last time? One question that I am curious about, I remember reading that Pacific island Papilio species do not mud puddle, if so how do you collect them in good quality? I would think that if they can only be collected at flowers most of them would be damaged. Adam.
True, I have never seen one mud puddle. But for a few days in a row JT and I sat and watched a male (presuming same individual) G. codrus on Guadalcanal sip from a concrete block on the seashore, while we were taking tea. Likewise, I've seen graphium and euploea on cliff faces sucking the wet clay.
Solely in my experience, perfect Pacific papilio specimens aren't hard to get (though I don't care a with about perfection) because there are so many of them. One merely has to catch a number of them, which can be challenging when dealing with those fast flying tree-topping Graphium. It would be no small feat to claim I saw 100 perfect G. codrus in one day, while catching one, in any condition, is a blessing.
Ornithoptera will come to hibiscus, which is everywhere. What they don't like is civilization. Michael in Kokombona ranches them, and he has to go several KM into the jungle to get pupae, despite the food plant being in his back yard. This isn't because the butterfly catching boogeyman grabs them all, it's because they truly do not like people.
Finding the right growth of flowers can be the challenge, since they might like this bunch over that bunch, despite the plant being the same species.
Woodfordi and bridgei are forest dwellers, and chasing those bastages through dense growth in ravines is brutal. I discovered that they have what we call trails (but are not "our" trails) and once one discovers the flyway it's a matter of standing there and allowing them to come to you.
The great "secret" is the locals. Iufalla save disfalla kaikai? Of course they do, most any kid can show you the larvae and/or foodplant of most butterflies. And of course, native gardens are a boon for the lazy entomologist, just like anywhere else.
Chuck
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