Butterflies Count - And So Did We!

One of our Monarch Committee's projects includes is to participate in the North American Butterfly Association's (NABA) Annual "4th of July" Butterfly Count. 

 

On June 2, Mickey, Linda, Beverly, Nancy and I met at our Freedom Butterfly Garden to hold our first count.  An article on the count appears in the July 2015 Creekline; click here for a PDF version of the submittal.

What the article did not include was a detailed accounting of the species and numbers we saw in the garden and around the river, the historic farmhouse and the Ruth Bennett Garden. 

·        Giant Swallowtail:  4

·        Palamedes Swallowtail:  1

·        Spicebush Swallowtail:  1

·        Black Swallowtail:  1

·        Tiger Swallowtail:  2

·        Gulf Fritillary:  4

·        Zebra Longwing:  3

·        Phaeon Crescent:  1

Although we did not see any skippers or hairstreaks that day, these butterflies are frequent visitors to our garden, and possibly throughout the park.  Beverly told us about the Spanish Needle growing in the Freedom Garden and its importance as a nectar source over those many months when pollinators have very few blooms available.  We discussed the garden's role as a butterfly sanctuary, and as a result of her talk, I highlighted the Spanish needle in the Butterflies Count Creekline article (thanks for the editorial suggestions, Beverly).

Our team was not "charged" with counting other pollinators, larvae, or birds, but we saw some grand examples of the wildlife that can be enjoyed if we give it the space to survive. 

Nancy contributed to the effort to give our native species a chance by pulling up some invasive coral ardesia.  See the article, "GardenerBeware:  Those Charming Invasives" submitted to the St Augustine Record for publication.

We plan to expand our "counting party" next year.  Hopefully, we'll have enough participants to also survey the Julington-Durbin Preserve, which is also in our NABA Bartram Trail Butterfly Circle.  If you are interested in joining us, send us an email; use this contact info (also shown in the right column of the home page). 

For more information about the North American Butterfly Association (NABA), go to their website www.naba.org  - the links below describe the 4th of July Count and the mission of the NABA:

·        About the NABA 

·        Butterfly Count Resources

·        Frequently Asked Butterfly Count Questions 

·        US/Mexico Map of Butterfly Count Circles  

·        How to Start a New Butterfly Count  

The sources for our butterfly identifications included, "Butterflies through Binoculars,"   available for loan at the Jacksonville public library, "shadowing" trips to GTMNERR to learn about their butterflymonitoring program, and discussions with Janet Koehler, who kindly provided resources from the University of Florida that they used to start their program.  

See our other articles published in our local newspapers.

IN MEMORY OF CAROLYN C KELLIHAN

Our long-time and most dear garden club member, Carolyn Kellihan, passed away peacefully on June 18, 2015. Carolyn's serene presence was always at our meetings, and she was the very first member to renew for 2016.  Although she was quiet, you always knew that she was attentive to everything, and always gracious.

Carolyn taught elementary school for many years and retained an interest in education after her retirement.  She was an active member of her church and a true lover of animals and wildlife in general.    Our garden club was blessed to count her among us.  And the long and lasting friendships she made will always be with us.

Plans for a Celebration of Life are not complete.  Carolyn is survived by a daughter and family - Kathy, Mark, Kelly, and Travis Jones - with whom she lived.   There are several nieces and family members living in the state.

We all will miss Carolyn but take comfort in the fact that she is now free from all cares and pain.