The Butterflies of November

The Garden is Still Alive with Fall Butterflies

     It's natural to think that as the leaves fall and the temperature drops, the season of the butterflies is pretty much done. But we still have flowers blooming in the garden, primarily lantana, zinnias, and marigolds, as well as a few last petals of phlox, penta, and others. When we have warmth and sunshine during the day,   we were still seeing a few skippers even as we entered November. So we kept watching, to see how late in the month we would continue to have visitors. 
     We have been astounded by what we have seen. Just today, November 14th, we had an eastern tailed blue, skippers (especially numerous perfect long-tailed skippers), and yellow sulphurs. 

      Even more surprising was the appearance of two butterflies that we have never seen in our garden before, the common checkered skipper, ironically one of the most commonly seen butterflies in North America, and the cutely named Sleepy Orange.  

      Another big surprise was a number of gulf fritillaries that over a week were regular visitors. They overwinter in the Florida peninsula, so we assume and hope that they are fueling up for the last leg of their southern migration. But we have had them as late as yesterday, November 13th. The Gulf Fritillary was only seen once all spring and summer, but we have had as many as three at a time passing through. Sometimes they rest in the leaves as well, almost invisible. 

     November butterflies spend a fair amount of time basking on the fallen leaves, where they blend in perfectly. So watch where you step!

Can you find the skipper in the photo below?

     We will keep watching to see how late we can go. We are hoping for Thanksgiving!