Editorial
Front Page - Friday, June 19, 2009
Weekly Indulgence
Samara Litvack
Last Saturday, my now 8-year-old friend Maiya and I headed to the Pot Point House at the foot of Signal Mountain for Butterfly Field Day in the Tennessee River Gorge. I’d stumbled upon the event online and it sounded right up our alley – exploring the riverside meadows, and learning about and taking inventory of native butterflies.
Our excursion began at the River Gorge Trust’s Field Station. Bill Haley, Tennessee Aquarium educator and president of the Tennessee Valley chapter of the North American Butterfly Association, greeted us and gave us our field guides, “Butterflies and Moths.” He explained a little about our day – we would take part in the dedication of the butterfly meadow and head on down to observe the various species.
We headed down the ramp to a nice setup of bagels and fruit, and were greeted by Jim Brown, the executive director of the River Gorge Trust. Jim welcomed us and gave us a brief history of the organization. He explained that the butterfly meadow was being dedicated to Mike Linger, the Trust’s former land stewardship director who had passed away the year before.
Mike’s family was in attendance as Jim and Bill both spoke highly of him and his work with the organization. Mike was responsible for the boardwalk on which we stood, made handicap accessible, with sensory trails, all numbered and keyed to books of Braille, with blind members of Mike’s and Jim’s family in mind.
A butterfly enthusiast, the meadow had been one of Mike’s dreams for many years. After his passing, local Eagle Scout James Bird created the butterfly habitat in his honor. When Jim and Bill had paid their respects, our group continued down the boardwalk and into the meadow, where Mike’s children unveiled a sign that read “Mike Linger Butterfly Meadow.”
From there, our group dispersed. Bill led the way, walking a few feet ahead with his butterfly net and a jar to examine what we found. He explained that counts were being taken all across the Tennessee Valley and the numbers would later be combined to represent our area in a published, nationwide count.
First, we came upon a Pearl Crescent, a small, orange and black Brushfoot butterfly. Bill explained this was one of the most common butterflies in our region and passed the jar, with a magnifying glass on top, for us all to get a closer look.
Next, we came upon a Great Spangled Fritillary, also orange and black and also a Brushfoot, but much larger than the Pearl Crescent. We then found a male Eastern Tailed Blue, a small little guy with a tail on his hind wings that Bill explained was used to trick his predators. (If a bird were to see this tail moving, it would attack his hindquarters, allowing him to escape alive.)
A blue butterfly whirred by a bit later, and Jim was finally able to track it down. (He’s really good with that net.) It was a Pipevine Swallowtail, gorgeous in color and large in size.
On the river side of the meadow, we saw a beautiful Monarch. Orange, black and white, this one was gorgeous and highly recognizable, even to someone like me (one of the few in the group who was not particularly educated in the arena of butterflies).
As we made our way around the meadow, we came upon some milkweed, which Bill said is an attractant for butterflies of many species. There, we saw several Silver Spotted Skippers — small in size and named obviously for their markings.
This is also where we saw two male Diana Fritillaries. (We knew the sex because the males are orange and the females are blue.) Bill said Dianas are only located in the South, in very specific regions. Two years ago, he said a record had been set during one of his counts when they spotted 132 Diana Fritillaries. Last fall, his group found 52, which was the highest number reported in North America. People from around the world come to Chattanooga to see Dianas, and with their gorgeous, colorful markings, it’s easy to see why.
As we rounded the meadow, we came upon a Northern Cloudywing, another member of the Skipper species. Bill pulled out his books and showed us the difference in a Northern Cloudywing and a Southern Cloudywing. He also showed us a picture of the Confused Cloudywing, which he joked was probably what we’d found if we couldn’t distinguish it between a Northern or Southern. (That cracked Maiya up.)
We also came across a Delaware Skipper and Dun Skippers, the latter of which Maiya identified thanks to their bright yellow heads.
We came upon Paw Paw Trees, which Bill had hoped would be the setting for Tennessee’s state butterfly – the Zebra Swallowtail. Although we did not see this particular butterfly, we did come across a Geometer Moth, which he explained begins its life as an inchworm.
Before we reached the end of our trip, we also came across some Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, Banded Hairstreaks and a Hoary Edge Skipper.
Around 12:30, we headed back to the field station. There, Bill called out the counts we had taken. In all, we saw a total of 76 butterflies. The group continued on down the riverside to collect a little more data, and I have a good feeling they came across even more.
I had an amazing time observing and learning about the variety of butterfly species that live in our region. I plan to revisit the Mike Linger Butterfly Meadow again soon, and Maiya and I will definitely return in the fall for the River Gorge Trust’s second count of the year.
Contact Samara at samara@hamiltoncountyherald.
com.
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