July 7th, 2012. We were returning along Hunt Camp Road
to Grant Mill Road when I spotted a Hoary Edge (Achalarus lyciades) butterfly
feeding at the top of a Hoarymountainmint (Pycnanthemum incanum)
bush. I’d photographed one the previous day at the Scull Shoals Experimental Forest (Green County, Georgia) but W hadn’t seen it. We backed down the road and stopped. What I
saw then was a Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus
clarus). There’s no way that I’d confuse the two but it was mind-bending
until we walked over to the bush to find one of each species feeding. We spent
some time photographing them with varying success in the fading light. And, then, there was a surprise.
Hoary
Edge (Achalarus lyciades)
This photo shows the underside of the wings
that gives the Hoary Edge its name
Another photo that shows the gold pattern
that’s visible on the upper side of the wing. The late afternoon light
illuminated these spots nicely.
Surprisingly,
the Hoary Edge flew down and landed on W’s arm in search of salts.
Silver-spotted
Skipper (Ergyreus clarus)
The underside of the wings of the
Silver-spotted Skipper
Again, the gold pattern that’s visible on the
upper side of the wing was illuminated in the late afternoon light.
Bee Assassin (Apiomerus crassipes)
While we were concentrating on photographing
the butterflies on the upper side of the leaves, a dark predator was lurking
under one of the leaves. An assassin bug, the Bee
Assassin (Apiomerus crassipes).
The
bug was hanging out on the underside of one of the leaves waiting for an
unsuspecting insect to stray within range. I disturbed it and it…
retreated
along the stem. I wanted to get a shot of…
its
proboscis, which it injects a toxin into its prey to suck the juices.
Click on an image to view a larger image
Identification
resources:
Hoary Edge (Achalarus lyciades)
Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus)
- Butterflies and Moths of North America: Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus)
Assassin bug, Bee Assassin (Apiomerus crassipes)
- Niches:
Bee Assassin
Southeastern Flora: Pycnanthemum incanum (Hoarymountainmint)
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