We spotted a new butterfly species in the garden!
From this ventral view it looks very much like its relative, the Hairstreak which we have seen here before.
This tiny Summer Azure (Celastrina 'neglecta') showed it's blue-gray namesake coloring when flying ...or at least we never saw it rest with its wings open. Brandon patiently took these photos in the few moments when he did pause on our bush clover (Lespedeza sp.) which hasn't begun blooming.
According to my butterfly book, there is a great deal of variation and therefore confusion in this group called Azures or Blues so hopefully we have correctly identified it. Anyway, we were excited to see a new species finding something of interest in our small garden.
Another (or perhaps our resident) Tiger Swallowtail visited the echinacea, which has seen a good bit of insect action lately.
These sweet visitors are so charming I can't help photographing them repeatedly.
You have some nice shots of the butterflies and echinacea competing for most colourful garden member, very pretty. I like the more subtle beauty of the summer azure as well.
It's very satisfying when your garden attracts wildlife. It's no longer in isolation, but part of the ecosystem. It's great when they can find what they need to survive in the city.
Posted by: Northern Shade | July 07, 2008 at 10:51 AM