Red Admiral flight

Chip Taylor chip at ku.edu
Thu Jun 7 14:33:20 EDT 2001


This is perhaps the best year I've ever seen for southern migrants in 
KS (11 butterfly species - earlier and in larger numbers than usual) 
and I gather that many of you are having similar experiences. I don't 
have much time for field work but while introducing a student to 
field studies on 1 June, I made the following observations;

Monarchs (3) vanishing bearings - gliding and powered flight 350-10 degrees

Red Admirals (about 20) strong powered flight vb - 320-340 degrees

Mourning Cloaks - not common in our area - (at least 6) all powered 
flight- slow - vb  270 degrees - many (>20) seen later in the day - 
some also moving west.

Time 9:30-10:30 CDT
Winds 5-8 miles/hr from 220 degrees
Sun - unobstructed
Temp - high 60's -low 70's

Curiously, each species was responding differently to the same 
conditions. Also, an hour later the monarchs - at least 20 seen - 
showed no directional flight.

Those of you interested in migrations might find David Gibo's website 
"Tactics and Vectors" - 
http://www.erin.utoronto.ca/~w3gibo/goalsof.htm - to be of interest. 
Similarly, Royce Bitzer's site 
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~mariposa/homepage provides additional 
guidance on how to record migration data.
-- 
Monarch Watch
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usps:  University of Kansas, Entomology Program, 1200 Sunnyside
Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045-7534

 
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