Four Butterfly Walks in AugustJoin Sarab Seth, the Butterfly Guy, for guided butterfly walks in the Botanic Garden. Weekend walks will take place on Saturday, August 23 at 1:00 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. For August, we’re also adding Wednesday walks, on August 20 at 1:00 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. Walks are free, but reservations are required. Each walk is limited to 10 participants, and we meet at the Visitor Center. Sign up HERE! From Sarab’s Notebook: The coldest summer in 60 years continues to affect butterfly emergence as well as the number of species and individuals we see on the butterfly walks. But August is one of the peak months for butterflies in the Garden. With somewhat decent weather on walk days, we should still see anywhere between six and 10 species. Likely sightings in August include common checkered-skipper (Pyrgus communis), field crescent (Phyciodes pulchella), cabbage white (Pieris rapae), umber skipper (Lon melane), and western tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus). At this time of year, western tiger swallowtails come to nectar on (and pollinate) the big stand of leopard lilies (Lilium pardalinum) on the southern edge of the pond lawn. If you’re lucky, you might see a butterfly with wings and abdomen liberally dusted with orange pollen. Where to Look (If You Can’t Join the Walks) The best spots now are: Also check out all the California pipevine swallowtail chrysalises (Battus philenor hirsuta) near the roofline of the shed on the upper path, just before the Channel Island section. Standing on the path, you can see three brown chrysalises and a green one (along with empty chrysalis shells). On the adjacent side, there are five more brown ones. Tip: Binoculars help a lot, especially close-focus ones. The happiest walkers are usually the ones who bring them! Want a preview? See the butterfly pages on the Garden website at: https://nativeplants.org/guides/butterflies-in-the-garden
|
