American Ladies in the East

[Ron Gatrelle]

David
ASSUMPTION. Lots of assumptions in lots of areas. So lets look at what is
fact. A worn or badly tattered specimen is an older specimen (unless it was
caught in a net and mangled by a butterfly watcher who wanted a closer look
before letting it go - I have seen this more than once.)  A fresh specimen
is a more freshly emerged one, or lucky enough to have not yet encountered,
birds, dragonflies, spider webs, brush, humans, or if the
non-flying-while-in-copulation-gender of a given species - has not yet
encountered the opposite sex and been drug around by its rear and abused
(Sounds like a lot of married _people_ I know!).

Relative to overwintering, the condition alone indicates nothing. An
individual was just older or younger when winter set it and it went to
sleep. In fact, I would think a fat juicy youngster would be better suited
to survive a big chill. For migrating or dispersing individuals, time, more
than distance, takes a toll on the specimens condition because of the
hazards encountered including weather.

I suspect a lot of facts might surprise us about overwintering if known.
Until then, we will continue to assume and give our "expert opinion" as it
changes book to book. Expert opinion, now there is a real oxymoron or a
lesson in being less-on. By the way, being a novice is great because only
experts and professionals can be real morons - junk science comes from junk
scientists.
    ;-)
Ron

----- Original Message -----
From: "David Webster" <david.h.webster at ns.sympatico.ca>
To: <jeff at primus.ca>; <leps-l at lists.yale.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2001 12:53 PM
Subject: Re: American Ladies in the East


> Hello All:                    May 1, 2001
>     I collected a V. virginiensis on Apr 29 in Kentville, Nova Scotia
(Lat
> ~45o5'N, Long ~64o30'W); flying and on the ground in a grassed clearing.
We have
> only recently lost most snow (continuous cover since before Christmas)
and there
> are still a few patches on level ground in the woods. Because it is in
good
> condition an e-quaintence advises me that it must have overwintered here.
>     Now I hear on this list that a worn specimen is indicative of
overwintering.
> Being a novice, numerous clicks below amateur status, I am puzzled by
this
> double interpretation and also wonder why condition would be especially
> diagnostic.
>     Can anyone fill me in ?
> Yours truly, Dave Webster, Kentville, Nova Scotia
>
> Jeff Crolla/Martha Hancock wrote:
>
> > In Toronto, Ontario I saw a single V. virginiensis on April 29 and
three or
> > four more on April 30th (all worn but still in pretty good shape). This
is a
> > little early according to the Toronto checklist (earliest date given is
May
> > 1). Vanessa atalanta rubria are also around but I haven't seen a cardui
yet.
> > At Point Pelee both were first seen on April 8 this year and on April
23 a
> > clear influx of 900 (!) immigrants of virgineinsis was reported along
with
> > 1200 V. atalanta and a single V. cardui. Not surprising some
virginiensis
> > have made it as far as Toronto by now. It appears clearly to be an
immigrant
> > in southern Canada although occasional successful overwintering cannot
be
> > ruled out.
> >
> > Michael's comments on the question of overwintering were interesting.
In
> > 1984 Opler & Krizek (Butterflies east of the Great Plains) gave
virginiensis
> > as resident throughout the eastern US but Opler revised this in 1992
> > (Peterson Guide to eastern Butterflies) to resident in the SE U.S. only
and
> > an immigrant to the E/NE U.S. and southern Canada. The literature is
> > contradictory on this point. For example Shapiro (1974 Butterflies and
> > skippers of NY state) reported virginiensis as somewhat migratory but
> > overwintering regulary in NY state. Iftner et al. (1992 Butterflies and
> > Skippers of Ohio) similarily describe it as resident and occasionally
> > migratory in Ohio, whereas more recently Allen for example (1997
Butterflies
> > of West Virginia) says it is a spring immigrant as far south as W.
virginia.
> > I would be interested in any comments/information on this question as I
am
> > working on an article that touches on this. Also be interested in any
> > literature references to southward migration of virginiensis in the
fall.
> >
> > Jeff
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Michael Gochfeld" <gochfeld at EOHSI.RUTGERS.EDU>
> > To: <LEPS-L at lists.yale.edu>
> > Sent: Monday, April 30, 2001 09:28 PM
> > Subject: American Ladies in the East
> >
> > > Apropos of the migration of Painted Ladies:
> > >
> > > American Ladies, Vanessa virginiensis, is unusually common this
spring
> > > in central and northern New Jersey. First appearing about mid-April
> > > after a very cold and protracted late winter/early spring, the
> > > individuals are still quite worn. They are present in the tens and
> > > twenties, not an inundation, but unusual numbers nonetheless. They
don't
> > > really seem to be migrating as much as hanging around. There is some
> > > speculation that these may have overwintered locally as adults (hence
> > > the very worn condition) rather than being migrants from further
south.
> > >
> > > M. Gochfeld
> > >
> > >
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