Sleepy Orange Swarms At Whitetail Lake

September 9, 2011. We drove down to Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center and stopped by Whitetail Lake. The temperatures had dropped into the 70s F. It was sunny but quite windy; the wind was blowing from the southwest. There weren’t too many dragonflies; some Eastern Amberwings (Perithemis tenera) and a few Eastern Pondhawks (Erythemis simplicicollis), male and female.

But there were butterflies. Several swarms of Sleepy Oranges, mostly braving the wind to drink at the lakes edge by the boat launch. A lot of Sleepy Oranges (Abaeis nicippe) and…

a few Cloudless Sulphurs (Phoebis sennae) and…

a lone Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)

One swarm, however, had found a spot in the lee of a hump of clay and vegetation and were enjoying the sun.

There they are in the center near the bottom of the photo. While the swarms in the open scattered at the slightest movement in their direction, the members in the sheltered swam were very calm and allowed me to approach…

closer, and...

closer, and still…

closer.
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Identification resources:
- Butterflies and Moths of North America: Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe)
- Bug Guide: Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe)

Sleepy Orange: Abaeis nicippe

The Sleepy Orange is the other yellow butterfly that is common at the moment. It is smaller than the Cloudless Sulphur and a golden-yellow color in contrast to the lemon-green color characteristic of the Cloudless Sulphur. Although I often see the Cloudless Sulphurs flying across the road on my commute home in the afternoons, I rarely see the Sleepy Oranges flying long distances.


The Sleepy Orange folds its wings immediately after it settles.

When disturbed, they fly in an erratic manner until they settle again. It’s very difficult to get a photo of this butterfly with open wings. I did manage to get a ‘silhouette’ shot that shows the ghost of the black band at the edge of the top of the wings.
Identification resources:
- West Central Georgia Butterflies by Michael Beohm: Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe)
- BugGuide: Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe) [Wings folded] [Wings open]
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