Honeydew?

[Dale Roberts/Bill Yule]

Hi all.
    If you all can suppress the  urge to snicker I have a serious question about a behavior I witnessed on Thursday that was unfamiliar to me.  As silly as this sounds it happened, I saw it and now I'm asking:  Do butterflies exchange honeydew? Can one butterfly nectar on the secretions of another?  Watching a butterfly garden in Connecticut I was observing the interactions of a male and female Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus). While the female was nectaring on a flower blossom the male landed behind her and repeatedly nipped at the end of her abdomen. This action was deliberate and repetitive, occurring about ten times in rapid succession.  I could not see if the male was extending his proboscis but the impression was one of an insect nectaring on the honeydew secretion of another in the way ants nectar on the secretions of aphids.  Each individual contact was brief, followed by the male pulling the head back and then contacting the female abdomen tip again.  What's going on here?  I've never noticed this before.  Thanks in advance and if this is common behavior please excuse my naivety.

                                Bill Yule
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