Category Archives: butterflies

Hiding in Plain Sight–Big Year Update 13

Posted on August 4, 2022 by the roused bear

One of the things I have found surprising about my butterfly big year is the difficulty I have had finding and photographing some normally common species. I got quick glimpses of a red admiral on a couple of occasions, but … Continue reading →

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Butterfly Church–Butterfly Big Year Update #8

Posted on June 18, 2022 by the roused bear

I went to my Butterfly Church yesterday. It is a special place where I usually can find that feeling of peace that I don’t often have in my life. I chase butterflies there, but I also take a folding chair … Continue reading →

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The Butterfly Big Year has Started

Posted on April 21, 2022 by the roused bear

Birders sometimes do something called a “big year.” During a calendar year, they try to see and identify as many of the bird species in a particular area as they can. A few butterfliers have done something similar, most famously … Continue reading →

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How to find Henry’s Elfin In Iowa

Posted on April 5, 2022 by the roused bear

Spring is here, and with it are all the wonderful things like spring wildflowers, birds and frogs calling, and early butterflies. Many of Iowa’s butterflies are pretty common, and you will run across them even if you are not looking … Continue reading →

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More Insects

Posted on July 27, 2021 by the roused bear

Summer allows me to get out, sometimes for just a few minutes a day and sometimes for much longer. The critters that are out are not too rare, but can be quite spectacular never the less. These cabbage white butterflies … Continue reading →

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Another Day in the Prairie

Posted on July 5, 2021 by the roused bear

I went to Medora Prairie this morning, and did what I do–wandered around with a camera trying to find butterflies. And I found some. One of the first butterflies I saw was this coral hairstreak. It was a first-of-the year … Continue reading →

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I Love Milkweed!

Posted on June 19, 2021 by the roused bear

We have sixteen species of milkweed here in Iowa. Some are quite rare and are a special treat to find. Common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca is not rare, and is found in a lot of our degraded habitats. It often grows … Continue reading →

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A Morning in Nature

Posted on May 24, 2021 by the roused bear

I spent the morning walking around in nature today. I was mostly looking for butterflies, but it was not a good day for them. May is always a time of low butterfly numbers, and it was too cloudy for those … Continue reading →

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Retirement

Posted on May 7, 2021 by the roused bear

Last week on Monday I turned 65 and Thursday of that week was my last day of work. I am officially retired now. A few years ago I was really looking forward to retirement, but more recently I really started … Continue reading →

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Yesterday’s Bugs

Posted on April 18, 2021 by the roused bear

Yesterday I went to Elk Rock State Park in southern Iowa to do some butterfly photography. This park has good numbers of a small, seldom seen butterfly called Henry’s elfin. This butterfly is found where its caterpillar hostplant, redbud, occurs … Continue reading →

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