tags: Gulf fritillary, Agraulis vanillae, butterfly, photography, Image of the Day
Gulf fritillary, Agraulis vanillae,
photographed at Smith Point Hawkwatch, Texas.
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 October 2006 [larger view].
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tags: common buckeye, Junonia coenia, butterfly, photography, Image of the Day
Common Buckeye, Junonia coenia,
photographed at Smith Point Hawkwatch, Texas.
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 October 2006 [larger view].
tags: long-tailed skipper, Urbanus proteus, butterfly, photography, Image of the Day
Long-Tailed Skipper, Urbanus proteus,
photographed at Smith Point Hawkwatch, Texas.
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 October 2006 [larger view].
Chrysalis of Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae,
Nelson Farms Preserve, Katy Prairie Conservancy, Texas.
NABA Butterfly Count, 10 September 2006.
This is a case of mimicry where the chrysalis resembles bird poop.
Image: Biosparite.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, dear readers…
Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae incarnata.
A Gulf Fritillary basks in the sun in early afternoon at the West 11th St. Park in Houston on 12 November 2006. It was cool the previous Sunday with temperatures in the 60s, so this butterfly, an ectotherm, was warming its wing muscles in the sun…
In spite of my best efforts, Gulf fritillary caterpillars have pretty well destroyed my native passion flower vines.
I apologize for posting this completely-unrelated-to-the-post link, but I thought you'd like it:
http://cache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/wad_10…
A gorgeous shot of a Common Kingfisher, from boston.com's "Big Picture" blog. ( http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/ ) Enjoy!
I have that same problem, Jim, and I don't want to dust the vine for fear of killing the honeybees that visit the remaining flowers. My passionflower vine also participates in shading the air conditioning unit on the back of my house, so I really rather resent it when the caterpillars destroy it. The vine recovers from the caterpillar onslaught each year, but looks terrible in the interim.
I would recommend using some other type of vine for shading or decoration. The Gulf Fritillary is abundant and widespread. I see individuals in Houston and in Atlanta. Passiflora is the host plant, so if you have Passifloras, you will have Gulf Frit. caterpillars. They are such a joy to see wafting by on their broad wings that I consider it a privilege to have any plant around that attracts them.Passifloras are not without defenses: they have nectaries that attract ants which provide defense in exchange for sugary sap. I have watched female Gulf Fritillaries in Houston lay their eggs on grass stems near Passifloras; it would appear this is a stratagem to give the eggs a chance to hatch without an ant attack. After hatching, the caterpillars move to the Passiflora.
Oooooooh, I love that photo! So beautiful!