Yd. list includes Isabella's Heliconian!!!

[Mike Quinn]

Our backyard list for 8 Nov. 1998 included a rather worn Isabella's
Heliconian (Heliconius isabella)!!! Interestingly, the previous 2 days were
cool and wet with intermittent showers. Almost no butterflies were flying.
We actually had the same species last Nov 29, 1997 in our yard!!! Took
pictures both times. This year it stayed for at least an hour from 1200 to
1315. This is our second November in the Rio Grande Valley with butterfly
gardens in place. The Isabella nectared almost exclusively on our
cultivated variety of Buddlia sp. with white flowers. This plant was
basically flowerless for the previous few months.

Other Butterflies today:

3 Giant Swallowtails
1 Great Southern White (Ascia monuste)
2 Large Orange Sulphurs
1 Sleepy Orange (puddling in the alley out back)
1 Lyside Sulphur
1 Gray Hairstreak
2 Mallow Scrub-Hairstreaks (Strymon columella)
10 American Snouts (L. carinenta)
10 Gulf Fritillaries
1 Phaon Chrescent
1 Tawny Emperor
1 Monarch
20 Queens
1 Soldier (D. eresimus)
1 White-striped Longtail (Urbanus doryssus)
1 Long-tailed Skipper (Urbanus proteus)
3 White-patched Skippers (Chiomara asychis)