American mistletoe

[Harriett Wright]

I've thought about rubbing mistletoe seeds into the bark of one of my oak trees
to see if I can get it to grow on my property.  But I hesitate because I love my
oaks and don't know how much damage the mistletoe can do.
Harriett

Mark Walker wrote:

> Just as Anne has mentioned, the Great Purple Hairstreak feeds on mistletoe,
> and therefore spends most of it's life cycle out of view of the average
> person (at least in locations where the parasite grows up high in the
> canopy).  Interestingly, pupation occurs in the ground below the host tree,
> thus the insect can be most easily found during this stage.
>
> The range of the butterfly includes a good portion of the southern U.S.,
> Mexico, and into Latin America.  There are at least three subspecies
> recognized in the U.S., but all three are equally stunning - it is arguably
> the most extravagantly adorned North American butterfly, with metallic blue,
> gold, red, green, and black scaling.
>
> I have seen it in numbers in central Florida, but it is apparently limited
> for some reason from the southernmost counties in Florida.  I have seen the
> western race in both Arizona and California in locations where the mistletoe
> grows closer to the ground.  The adults will nectar on flowers and also
> drink from moist sand, but they don't usually stay low to the ground for
> very long.
>
> Hope this helps, and I hope you get a chance to see this piece of work some
> day.