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Saturday, October 5, 2013

The Buckeye stops here


A sparkling Pacific Ocean, photographed from Bodega Head on 5 October 2013


It was a warm fall day with an offshore wind, conditions that are good for butterflies (among other things!).

I think I saw more Buckeyes (Junonia coenia) on Bodega Head today than I've ever seen before, including several mating pairs.  

Below you can see a pair in the mating position, "tail to tail."  


Here's a view from the side, with wings closed, which makes it a little easier to see both individuals (this is the same pair as in the photo above).  Butterflies may stay in this position for ~30 minutes or several hours.


I don't know if Buckeye caterpillars ever grow up on Bodega Head, but I'm glad the adults visit here in the fall!
 

1 comment:

Alice Chan said...

We were walking around behind PRBO yesterday, and also saw more Buckeyes than we'd ever seen in one day before.