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The Rochester Butterfly Club is an independent club formed to promote the study of butterflies in Western New York. We focus on habitat, environment, life cycles, education, and reporting our findings.
Chasing Butterflies with Your Camera
By Doug Holland
Monday, April 28, 2014 at 7:30pm
Downstairs Meeting Room at Brighton Town Hall, 2300 Elmwood Avenue, just west of
Twelve Corners in Brighton. The room is on the lower level, access is from the back of the building.
Great Spangled Fritillary on Knapweed By Doug Holland
Doug Holland is a member of Rochester Butterfly Club and long time nature photographer. He will show digital images and talk about how he got started with butterflies with the aid of digital photography and an assortment of butterfly field guides and online resources to help with identification. There will be tips to help you get started with butterflies or take your butterflying to the next level.
The meeting is free and open to the public. Refreshments provided.
Contact: 383-8168
The Rochester Butterfly Club is an independent club formed to promote the study of butterflies in Western New York. We focus on butterfly watching, habitat, environment, life cycles, education, and reporting our findings.
Field Trips
One of the best ways to learn about butterflies and where to find them is to go on a field trip with experienced leaders who will share their knowledge with you. Each year the Rochester Butterfly Club organizes at least 15 guided field trips to prime butterfly spots in the local area, including some members’ gardens. These trips take place on both weekdays and weekends. The trips are listed in our annual schedule sent out to members in the spring. We are always pleased to welcome non-members on our trips. You need only to show up at our butterfly walks as announced in the printed schedule. If you have them, bring a pair of binoculars and a butterfly identification book. (If you don’t have a book of your own, try your local library.)
Newsletter
Members receive our newsletter “Butterly News,” which is published 3 times a year. It includes a variety of articles and topical information about our local butterflies.
If you would like to become a member of the Rochester Butterfly Club, an application can be found here.
Club Officers:
President: Carol Southby Vice President / Secretary: Shirley Shaw Treasurer: Lucretia Grosshans Statistics: Bill McCleary Editor: David Southby For information about the Rochester Butterfly Club, contact Lucretia Crosshans.
ROCHESTER BUTTERFLY
CLUB
2014 FIELD TRIPS and
ACTIVITIES
www.rochesterbutterflyclub.org
Our field trips are free and will take place rain or shine, but not during thunder storms. On cloudy or showery days, we will have a general nature walk, and look for caterpillars, hiding butterflies and plants that butterflies use. With luck the sun will come out and with it, the butterflies.
Our morning field trips last about 2 hours. Some trips have an option to continue into the afternoon, and others are all day trips, returning some time after 4p.m. Bring a cold drink and for the longer trips, your lunch and folding chair.
***** Long pants and appropriate footgear are strongly recommended, as there is often poison ivy *****
We have provided contact numbers (all area code 585) in case you would like more information about a field trip. For most of our field trips, just come along to the meeting place listed. Also for most of our field trips, an alternate meeting place may usually be arranged, if needed, via one of the contact numbers. A few field trips do require pre-registration, as noted.
Please bring close focusing binoculars, a field guide and your camera, but leave your butterfly nets at home, because they can injure wings, legs and antennae.
Non-members, beginners and children accompanied by an adult are welcome at all of our activities.
During recent years there have been deer ticks in the area and cases of Lyme disease contracted here. Because of this, we recommend you wear long pants tucked into socks, and use insect repellent.
2014 Field trips list can be downloaded here.
| May 6, 9 or 10 | ROME SAND PLAINS for Elfins and wildflowers |
| We hope to visit Rome, weather permitting, either Tues. May 6, Fri. May 9 or Sat. May 10. | |
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If you would like to join us for this all day trip, please contact 383-8168 before May 3 |
| May 17 | GENESEE LAND TRUST NATIVE PLANT SALE |
Saturday 8:30 a.m. - 2 p.m . |
Arrive early for best selection !!!! |
| May 22 | SAMPSON STATE PARK for Juniper habitat species ***NEW*** |
| Thursday 9:30 a.m | All day trip. Meet at the Park and Ride parking lot by the Bushnell’s Basin Exit of Route I-490. |
| June 14 | ADIRONDACK MOUNTAIN CLUB OUTDOOR EXPO MENDON PONDS PARK |
| Saturday 9 a.m. - 4 p.m | See the Web site for more info: http://www.adk-gvc.org/expo. |
| June 21 | GENESEE LAND TRUST BACK YARD HABITAT TOUR |
| Saturday 9 a.m. - 4 p.m | www.geneseelandtrust.org – Events and Activities – Special Events |
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| June 24 | WEBSTER WELL FIELD For sandy area species |
| Tuesday 10 a.m. | Morning trip. Meet in parking lot, near entrance, at St. Martin Lutheran Church, 813 Bay Road, Webster. Directions: From 104, exit at Bay Road (the first exit east of the Bay Bridge). Turn right / north on Bay Road and go a short distance past Volk Road (small grocery on the corner). The next intersection is Park, where the church is on the left. Turn left on Park to get to the entrance of the parking lot. Lunch optional. |
| June 28 | ROCHESTER AREA “4th OF JULY” COUNT (Rain Date, Sunday June 24) |
| Saturday from 10 a.m. | Several different locations, including Mendon Ponds Park, Powder Mills Park, High Acres Nature Area and Thousand Acre Swamp. |
| July 2 | PRIVATE PROPERTY in Alleghany County |
| Wednesday | All day trip to private property south of Nunda. About a 1 ½ hour drive from Rochester. Pot luck lunch. Registration required. To register contact 473-1277 |
| July 5 | LETCHWORTH STATE PARK 4th OF JULY COUNT (Rain Date, Sunday July 6) |
| Saturday from 10 a.m. | Several different locations and car pooling available from Rochester. If you would like to participate, contact Douglas Bassett, Park Naturalist at 493-3625. |
| July 10 | HI TOR AREA, near Naples for Hairstreaks and higher elevation species |
| Saturday & Sunday | All day trip. Meet at the Park and Ride parking lot by the Bushnell’s Basin Exit of Route I-490. |
| July 12 | GANARGUA CREEK MEADOW PRESERVE nearest address, 727 Wilkinson Rd, Macedon |
| Saturday 10 a.m. | Morning trip. Joint trip with Genesee Land Trust. Meet at the Creek-side entrance near the intersection of Wilkinson and Victor Rd. in Wayne County, about 30 minutes from Rochester. Directions: From Route 31 in Macedon, turn south onto Route 306 (Wayneport Road). Turn east onto Wilkinson Road and drive to the parking lot on the right, just before T intersection with Victor Road. Wear long pants and appropriate footgear, as there is poison ivy. Optional bring lunch and folding chair. |
| July 17 | PRIVATE PROPERTY in RUSH |
| Thursday 10 a.m. | Morning trip with optional afternoon extension. For information Contact 383-8168 |
| July 20 | WHITING ROAD NATURE PRESERVE, WEBSTER For sandy area species ***NEW*** |
| Sunday 10 a.m. | Morning trip. Meet at the trailhead parking lot, 403 Whiting Road, on the west side of Whiting Road, approximately 1 mile north of Klem Road and approximately a half mile south of Lake Road. |
| July 22 | CANADICE LAKE ROAD for Midsummer's Butterflies and Birds |
| Tuesday 9 a.m. | All day trip. Joint trip with Burroughs Audubon Nature Club. Meet at Rush Park and Ride to explore areas near Canadice and Hemlock Lakes. Includes visit to a private property. Directions: Rush Park and Ride lot is at Rt. 15 and Rt. 251 off I-390, exit 11 for Rush. Lakes area is about a half hour drive from Rush. Bring lunch and a folding chair. |
| July 26 | BUTTERFLY GARDEN |
| Saturday 10 a.m. | Morning trip to private property with butterfly gardens. For information, Contact: 383-8168 |
| August 9 | RATTLESNAKE HILL WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA For higher elevation species |
| Saturday 9 a.m. | All day trip. Meet at the Park and Ride lot at Rt. 15 and Rt. 251 off I-390, exit 11 for Rush. The area is about a one hour drive from Rush. Bring Lunch and a folding chair. |
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| August 25 | HOWLAND ISLAND for wetland species ***NEW*** |
| Monday 9:00 a.m. | All day trip. Meet at the Park and Ride parking lot by the Bushnell’s Basin Exit of Route I-490. |
| September 2 | BURGER PARK in Greece for late summer wetland species |
| Tuesday 10 a.m. | Morning trip, optional afternoon extension. Meet in the parking lot at Braddock Bay Park, near the lodge. Directions: Take Lake Ontario Parkway west and exit at East Manitou Road. Go north to the park entrance, then follow the park road to the north. About 30 minutes drive from Rochester. We will car pool from here. |
| September 16 | HIGH ACRES NATURE AREA, PERINTON For late summer species ***NEW*** |
| Tuesday 10 a.m. | Morning trip. Meet in parking spaces nearest Turk Hill Road at Perinton Town Hall, 1350 Turk Hill Road, Fairport. |
| August 1 thru October. 15 | MONARCH COUNT |
Please send your Monarch counts and all your other butterfly sightings during the season to us. |
**** Please remember to send all your butterfly sightings ****
Whenever you go out butterflying or are just sitting on your back porch, keep a list of the butterflies you see and how many of each. Be sure to record the location and date of each sighting and the observers. If the town and county of the sightings are not well known, record those also. Finally, if you see any other interesting things such as caterpillars (if you can identify them) or a female butterfly laying eggs, see if you can also identify the plant and send this information along as well.
You can send your records to Bill either as you make them or at the end of the season. Send them on our standard checklist record sheets or in any other form that you prefer.
Lots of information about the Monarch Butterfly
North American Butterfly Association
Greg Lasley Nature Photography
North American Insects and Spiders
Robert Michael Pyle's account of his butterfly big year in Orion Magazine.
Help preserve the Auburn Trail. Information can be found here.
If you would like to download this list for printing, you can find it here.
If you would like to download this list for printing, you can find it here.
If you would like to download this list for printing, you can find it here.
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Butterfly host plants:
| Butterfly Species | Caterpillar Plants | |||
| Trees and Shrubs | ||||
| Tiger Swallowtail | American hornbeam | ash | tulip tree | wild cherry |
| Spicebush Swallowtail | sassafras | spicebush | ||
| Harvester | woolly aphids on alder | |||
| Coral Hairstreak | black cherry | choke cherry | ||
| Acadian Hairstreak | small willows | |||
| Banded Hairstreak | oaks | |||
| Hickory Hairstreak | hickory | |||
| Striped Hairstreak | American hornbeam | black chokeberry | hawthorn | |
| Spring Azure | flowering dogwood | maple-leaf viburnum | New Jersey tea | shrubby dogwoods |
| Question Mark | elm | (and herbaceous) | ||
| Eastern Comma | elm | (and herbaceous) | ||
| Compton Tortoiseshell | birch | |||
| Mourning Cloak | elm | poplar | willow | |
| White Admiral | American hornbeam | black cherry | cottonwood | oak |
| Red-spotted Purple | American hornbeam | black cherry | cottonwood | oak |
| Viceroy | small poplars | small willows | ||
| Hackberry Emperor | hackberry | |||
| Tawny Emperor | hackberry | |||
| Silver-spotted Skipper | black locust | |||
| Dreamy Duskywing | birch | poplar | ||
| Juvenal's Duskywing | oaks | |||
| Butterfly Species | Caterpillar Plants | |||
| Herbaceous | ||||
| Black Swallowtail | dill | fennel | parsley | Queen Anne's Lace |
| West Virginia White | toothwort | |||
| Cabbage White | cabbage family | |||
| Clouded Sulphur | clovers | |||
| Orange Sulphur | alfalfa | |||
| American Copper | sheep sorrel | |||
| Bronze Copper | swamp dock | |||
| Eastern-tailed Blue | pea family | |||
| Great Spangled Fritillary | violets | |||
| Aphrodite Fritillary | violets | |||
| Atlantis Fritillary | violets | |||
| Silver-bordered Fritillary | violets | |||
| Meadow Fritillary | violets | |||
| Butterfly Species | Caterpillar Plants | |||
| Herbaceous | ||||
| Harris' Checkerspot | flat topped aster | |||
| Pearl Crescent | asters | |||
| Baltimore Checkerspot | English plantain | white turtlehead | ||
| Question Mark | hops | nettle species | ||
| Eastern Comma | nettle species | |||
| Milbert's Tortoiseshell | nettle species | |||
| American Lady | pearly everlasting | sweet everlasting | ||
| Painted Lady | bull thistle | nodding thistle | ||
| Red Admiral | nettle species | |||
| Monarch | common milkweed | swamp milkweed | butterflyweed | |
| Hoary-edge Skipper | tick trefoils (Desmodium) | |||
| Southern Cloudywing | tick trefoils (Desmodium) | |||
| Northern Cloudywing | bush clovers (Lespedeza) | tick trefoils (Desmodium) | ||
| Wild Indigo Duskywing | wild indigo (Baptisia) | |||
| Common Checkered Skipper | mallow family | |||
| Butterfly Species | Caterpillar Plants | |||
| Grasses and Sedges | ||||
| Northern Pearly Eye | grasses | |||
| Eyed Brown | sedges (Carex) | |||
| Appalachian Brown | sedges (Carex) | |||
| Little Wood Satyr | grasses | |||
| Common Ringlet | grasses | |||
| Common Wood Nymph | grasses | |||
| Arctic Skipper | grasses | |||
| Least Skipper | grasses | |||
| European Skipper | Timothy grass | |||
| Leonard's Skipper | grasses | |||
| Peck's Skipper | grasses | |||
| Tawny-edged Skipper | grasses | |||
| Crossline Skipper | grasses | |||
| Long Dash | grasses | |||
| Northern Broken Dash | grasses | |||
| Little Glassywing | grasses | |||
| Delaware Skipper | grasses | |||
| Hobomok Skipper | grasses | |||
| Dion Skipper | sedges (Carex) | |||
| Broad-winged Skipper | Phragmites | |||
| Dun Skipper | sedges (Carex) |