Orange Sulphur Butterfly

There is an area along the side of a road in my neighborhood which has been allowed to go natural.  I hope they leave it this way!   I saw three butterflies there today at noon.  The Orange Sulphur was my favorite.  Many people mistake it for a moth.  What I like best about it is the surprise you get when you happen to see the open wings and catch the color and pattern on the inside that is not terribly visible when the wings are folded.

Today's Garden Visitors

Today's butterflies

Twelve-spotted Skimmer (female)

American Lady on creeping thyme

American Lady (side view)

Blue Dasher (female) munching on a bug

Peonies are in bloom! 

Common Whitetail, male

Common Whitetail, female

Ebony Jewelwing, male

Peck's Skipper on Catmint

These last 2 pictures are of the only 2 roses I have in my garden.  They are the old-fashioned roses which are harder to take care of, often get black spot but they have beautiful perfume, beautiful pale colors and bloom well!  A few years ago the black spot was so terrible that all the leaves fell off and I seriously considered doing away with both plants.  I'm glad that I didn't give up on them!

Massachusetts Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary

Mute Swans and cignets 

(several signs posted at entrance about how aggressively 

they will protect their babies and to keep your distance)

Eastern Phoebe

Eastern Pondhawk

Little Wood Satyr

Long Dash Skipper on Clover 

Little Wood Satyr #2

New England Wildflower Society Garden in the Woods

I walked at Garden in the Woods today with my parents.  It was 74 degrees.  We wore long sleeves and long pants, expecting the bugs to be bad and they were not!  Everyone else was in tank tops and shorts!  It was a warm day, and we were hot!

We saw only one lonely wild lady slipper on Ridge Trail!  (We had gone so that Mom could see the lady slippers.)

On our way up Lady Slipper Trail, we did have an exciting encounter with a snake who was mid-snack!

Garter Snake eating Wood Frog

We did also see one cluster of small yellow lady slippers on our way out on the steps on Curtis Trail.

Of course, the rest of the time, I was on the hunt for butterflies!

American Lady (tattered and torn)

Peck's Skipper

Pearl Crescent (tattered and torn)

Little Wood Satyr

Ebony Jewelwing (male)

Question Mark

Question Mark

Vacation Nature - Acadia National Park

Spring Azure butterfly (sorry it's blurry) sitting on lichen-covered boulder on Cadillac Mountain

Wild Lupine along Park Loop Road

Common Yellowthroat, Cadillac Mountain

Wildflower along Carriage Road

Vacation Nature - Nova Scotia

 Silvery Blue butterfly, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Silvery Blue (a first for me)

Song Sparrow, Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia

Wild Lupine overlooking Annapolis Bay, Digby, Nova Scotia

Vacation Nature - New Brunswick

I've missed my blog!  Hope you have, too!  I just spent 12 days on vacation in New Brunswick,  Nova Scotia, and Maine with my Mom and Dad.  We had a great time and enjoyed some nature sightings along the way, even though nature was not the primary focus of our trip!

Cormorants gathering at Reversing Falls, St. John, New Brunswick

Mama Fox w/ 3 kits (2 out of range) at Irving Nature Park, St. John, New Brunswick

Red Admiral butterfly, Irving Nature Park

Great Blue Heron, Irving Nature Park

Porcupine, Irving Nature Park

New England Wildflower Society Garden in the Woods

 American Lady on Dwarf Bluestar

 Red Admiral

 American Lady

poss. Duskywing

 Pearl Crescent

Question Mark
(the small white marking on its lower middle wing gives it its name)

Yellow Ladyslippers