When I’m on birding walks, I always admire the wildflowers that line the trails and that sometimes blanket big swaths of meadows in vibrant colors. In recent weeks, I’ve seen more and more butterflies, dragonflies and bees sampling the sugars from the blossoms.
I needn’t even leave my home to take in the sights. Swallowtail butterflies have been cruising to the Mexican marigolds in our big garden box and checking out the wild bergamot that’s begun to bloom in our yard. I took the photo atop this post there earlier this month.
Those lovely pink wild bergamot (a.k.a. bee balm) blossoms must be like crack cocaine to butterflies. At Rosedale Park in Pennington, I watched a black swallowtail dive into blossom after blossom.
Also at Rosedale Park, I watched in fascination as a coneflower mining bee went about its titular duties atop a coneflower. That tiny bee was a new one for me. I got the ID by plugging my photo into the iNaturalist seek app, which has done for plant and insect identification what the Merlin app has done for birds.
I had more insect and butterfly encounters Saturday while birding at Assunpink Wildlife Management Area. First up was a monarch butterfly, which landed on a thistle blossom a few feet from me.
I also spotted a butterfly I can’t recall seeing before — a variegated fritillary taking sips from yellow-orange blossoms.
One other insect I caught dining Saturday was a Halloween pennant dragonfly that landed atop a mullein plant with bright yellow blossoms. I try not to anthropomorphize non-human creatures, but I can’t help but see a cartoon-like human face on this sublime flying creature.
On this site I write mainly about birds and their glorious colors. I share almost as equally in delight over the other creatures sharing the same airspace in field and forest. What a bountiful visual buffet our world provides. 🦋
The Jersey Birder 
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