9.9.25 ~ Chapel Hill, North Carolina
An atypical lovely September day dawned and invited us to explore another wonderful nature preserve. There we were delighted to find a labyrinth and two new kinds of butterflies. Tim was pondering how to describe his current style of walking, coming up with strolling, but not entirely satisfied with that word. Thinking of Thoreau, I suggested sauntering to him. He tried it on and used it a few times. Looked it up at home. It’s sticking.
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The butterfly obtains
But little sympathy
Though favorably mentioned
In Entomology —
Because he travels freely
And wears a proper coat
The circumspect are certain
That he is dissolute
Had he the homely scutcheon
Of modest Industry
’Twere fitter certifying
For Immortality —
~ Emily Dickinson
(The Poems of Emily Dickinson, #1701)
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We couldn’t get enough of the bright color of these red-spotted purples and couldn’t wait to get home to identify this butterfly!
There were hundreds of these satyrs flying around the labyrinth and nearby. They were tiny and didn’t stay still long enough for a good photo shoot.
To be honest, I forgot to think about ticks before taking this walk. Then, about half way through the walk we encountered three serious birders coming down the trail, carrying large camera lenses and binoculars. I noticed they all had their pants tucked into their socks, which jogged my memory and started me worrying since I had no tick repellent on.
Later that evening I felt a strong itch near my knee and the next morning saw the seed tick bite. Just one. Why do I never see an adult tick? Why do these invisible seed ticks get me every time??? (And never bother Tim…) But one bite is better endured than the 27 bites I got the first time this happened. I’ve got to learn to not let my guard down.
I always enjoy these meanderings!
Thanks so much for letting me know, Leelah! ♡
Sauntering is a lovely way to describe your stroll. Your photos are beautiful, peaceful, and a reminder of gentler things. Thank you.
Thank you for your kind words, Ally. It may not be an aerobic workout but a saunter gives our minds more awareness of our surroundings.
What lovely butterflies … and the beautyberry certainly lives up to its name! I agree, “sauntering” is a great description and sometimes, it’s exactly what we need to heal our souls. Sorry about the tick, but I’m glad it wasn’t worse — those things terrify me since I’ve got a long-haired dog.
Thank you, Debbie! Those big red-spotted purples were such a pretty color and so delightful to watch as they fluttered around. Sauntering does give one more time to pause and appreciate the world around us, and that gratitude does help with healing. If I had a dog I’d be quite worried about ticks, too.
What a beautiful butterfly and path! I’ve been reluctant this year to venture out into the woods after two seed ticks burrowing on my torso. Thank you for sharing your adventures.
Thank you, Emily! It’s nice to know you’re enjoying my adventures. You have my sympathy over your seed tick bites – wow – I’ve never had them on my torso. Sadly, I’ve been avoiding the woods all summer.
This was a nice, easygoing saunter down the woodland path – I like your choice of words Barbara and I’m glad Tim liked it too. I’ve never seen a Carolina Satyr butterfly, but I had a similar experience at the Botanical Gardens a few weeks ago where all these tiny butterflies emerged from a large group of Allium just as I approached the Allium. It surprised me and like what happened to you, they were so tiny it did not make for good pictures, except I got one shot when one butterfly landed on a cement wall. I thought they were Pearl Crescent butterflies but Google Images identified it as a Skipper. You’ll see it in my September 21st post. I like your Red-spotted Purple butterfly … that’s a beautiful up-close shot of it. I’ve only seen one and I went back to my post about it because I had a difficult time identifying it – with wings open, it looked like yours, but with wings up, the outer part of its wings were brown with orange spots. I searched and searched, finally decided Red-spotted Purple it was. Next time I’ll search with wings spread open first. 🙂 I see pokeweed this time of years and Jocelyn Anderson had some in a recent post – I learned from her it was harmful to humans, not birds. That berry looks like a mini plum doesn’t it? No bird bite marks on it?
I thought the satyr might have been another kind of skipper when I first saw it. So far I’ve gotten pictures of three kinds of skippers — fiery, silver-spotted, and clouded. Apparently there are lots of kinds of satyrs, too. They’re also called browns. Looking forward to seeing your skipper photos soon! Thank you for liking my red-spotted purple photos. I didn’t get a good picture of the outside of its wings, but I know exactly what you mean, I noticed, too, that the other side of its wings look nothing at all like the inside!
No bird bite marks on those berries and google id gave lots of possibilities. I suppose I would need to figure out which leaves in that thicket belonged to the twigs those berries were on to narrow down their identity.
It’s always nice to discover new plants and insects on a meandering saunter, even if we can’t identify them all.
Sometimes Google Images can pinpoint exactly – that amazes me, but today I finished up that post for the 21st and once again I tried to I.D. it with three different I.D. and I think “Fiery” was one of them. I’ve never seen a Skipper before. Like you, it was amazing to see them all emerge at once.
Sometimes cherries or plums have that yellowish tinge on the skin, maybe a blemish of some kind, resting against a branch perhaps, so I wasn’t sure if it was a bitemark.
It is nice to discover new plants and insects. Last week I discovered a new type of flower that draws butterflies – they were everywhere and I saw a dragonfly and hopefully captured it, but mostly the plants were in the Grow Zone at Lake Erie Metropark. (I took so many photos last week, I almost dread looking at them and may put it off awhile to get other things done like groceries, appointments, etc.). I just wrote the woman I correspond with who said they were going to plant native plants at Council Point Park and asked if they might consider planting some there. If we can’t have trees and bushes like before, at least have a plant that will bring pollinators.
What was the new flower you discovered? I hope the woman at Council Point Park will consider your request to plant some of them there!
The flower is Virginia Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum) and some info on it states it is a native perennial plant known for its aromatic, mint-scented foliage and abundant white flowers that attract a wide range of pollinators. It grows 2-3 feet tall, prefers moist to average soils in full or partial sun, and spreads by rhizomes. The leaves and flower buds are edible and can be used to make a minty tea, and the plant is resistant to deer and rabbits. I’m guessing they planted it since deer don’t like it as they have deer roaming around there. But the butterflies and bees were all over it. I hope they consider planting it at Council Point Park. I even wondered if it would be nice to plant to encourage butterflies at the house, but I read up on it and you have to grow it by seeds and it can be invasive at a home garden. I always remember the Forget-me-Nots I planted from seed, thinking they’d be a spot of color here and there in the Spring and soon they overtook the garden. I’m still yanking them out years later!
Thanks for giving me the name of the Virginia Mountain Mint. I looked it up to see what it looks like and agree with you, they would make a pretty addition to the plantings at Council Point Park, especially when covered with butterflies! 🙂
I hope they take my suggestion to heart Barbara! Even Goldenrod would be a plus, not only for the color but because the butterflies and bees like it.
I’ve wanted to mention this for a while Barbara … whenever I comment on anyone’s blog post, before I leave I wait to ensure the comment “took” – it’s usually a minute and it appears and says “1m ago”, but, on your blog posts, when I make a comment, a few seconds later, it says “13 minutes ago” (13m ago) … this is all the time. But at least I know it is there!
Hmmm…
I thought it was an interesting observation too. You ‘ll have to try it out for yourself – comment, then delete your comment afterward.
What a gorgeous butterfly! But the satyr has her own beauty, too. Lovely discoveries, but sorry to hear you picked up an unwanted hitchhiker. We really can’t let our guard down… your post is a good reminder to stay on top of protecting myself. We’re still in a dry spell, but once a good rain comes, they will be on us in no time, ugh. 🙁
I agree, bright colors are beautiful but I love earthy neutral tones, too. I’ve always been fond of mourning doves and their shades of brown coloring. It’s so frustrating. Permethrin can’t be used on the skin and deet can’t be used on clothing. It’s so complicated trying to figure out how to protect myself. We’re in a dry spell, too. Maybe that’s why I only got one bite… 🙁
I noticed you said “atypical” about your September day – are they usually not nice? As much as I dread September for the loss of the free time, the weather is usually wonderful. The red spotted purples are gorgeous! They must not meander this far north. I’ve never let my guard down about ticks since I got anaplasmosis from a tick back in 2020. I was miserable and had trouble getting diagnosed with my 104 fever in the height of Covid! (forgive me if I’ve commented on this before, lol, it is where my mind goes when I read about anything to do with ticks! I carry tick repellent in my car now “just in case”)
September days here are as hot as August days are in Connecticut, in the 80s typically. To have a few days with below normal temperatures here so early in September was quite a treat! Our wonderful weather here comes in October. It’s funny, some of the range maps show red-spotted purples in Connecticut but I don’t think I ever saw one while I was living there. I agree, they are gorgeous and I was so excited to discover them! Your anaplasmosis nightmare sounds very serious and scary – I do remember you mentioning it before, as I had never heard of it, and don’t blame you for being extra wary of those little monsters.
I hope you are enjoying some more nice weather!
It comes and goes – we catch it when we can!