Okefenokee Swamp NWR – Swallowtails to Thistles
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With no killing frosts this winter the mosquitoes here are just about the size of the swallowtail butterflies.
The swallowtails to the roadside thistle is amazing, a veritable feeding frenzy.
A winged herbivorial feeding frenzy?
“Butterflies and moths belong to the second largest order of insects (next to beetles) with approximately 170,000 specis worldwide. All have two pair of wings covered with overlapping layers of fine scales. They feed by uncoiling a long feeding-tube (proboscis) and sucking nutrients from flowers, puddles,etc. When not in use, the tube is coiled under the head.
The two groups differ in several ways. Butterflies are active by day, brightly colored, have a thin body, rest with their wings held erect over the back, and have thin antennae that thicken at the tip. Moths are active at night, most are dull in color, have a stout body, rest with their wings folded tent-like over the back,and have antennae that are usually thicker and often furry.” Golden Guides: Butterflies and Moths
The 2011 Honey Island wildfire, just now extinguishing itself, left scars on the land, especially within the western side of the swamp. Green palmetto rebirth is making itself known among the semi-burnt pine prairies .
Tomorrow the eastern side, the Folkston, Georgia side, of the Okefenokee Swamp NWR.