Southern Quartet performs at Lighthouse Point

[Clay Taylor]

Hi all -

    While on my way to Quaker Ridge to see Broadwinged Hawks, I stopped at Lighthouse Point Park to see 1) what hawks were flying, and 2) to try and find my first Conn. Sachem.   The skies were blue with puffy clouds, and a nice breeze was propelling hawks towards New Haven and points south - they had seen eight Bald Eagles by the time I left at 1pm.

    Tony Tortora and Richard English were on station counting hawks, but Richard was interested in seeing if the Sachems were still there, so we strolled over to the dandelion patch in search of skippers.   As we walked, a Cloudless Sulphur blasted by, for our first southern butterfly species.   The warm sun (after a few dreary days) really had the skippers charged up, as they were in constant hyperdrive - landing on flowers, leaves, or the bare ground and taking off seconds later to chase rivals, passing sulphurs, or god knows what else.   I never got close enough to attempt a digital photo of any of them.

    Southern species two was a fine male Sachem on a dandelion, which was in turn chased by another one, both zooming out of sight in no time at all.   Richard and I were spotting skippers and trying to point them out to each other, but by the time we could describe the location, it had already flown away!   After a little while, we just had to laugh at our frustration.   There were at least four different individual male Sachems, including a very worn one.  I didn't see a female.

    I was pretty sure that I saw the bright orange of a Fiery Skipper zoom by on occasion, and finally succeeded in spotting an immaculate male perched on a dandelion leaf - Richard missed it.  Southerner #3.   

    A few minutes later,a dark blur landed on a flower about 10 feet away from me (kind of like how the Tazmanian Devil travels in the Warner Bros. cartoons - a whirling tornado that stops to briefly reveal the beast, only to resume whirling about the countryside and eating holes in trees, etc.).   Holy Cow - that jet fighter shape - an Ocola Skipper!   Richard was able to see it sitting there for a few seconds before it took off - a new lifer for him.   The fourth Southerner was in the building.   Way Cool.

Clay Taylor
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