SE Colorado Birding: Delaware Skipper-a small butterfly

Friday, August 11, 2006

Delaware Skipper-a small butterfly

This small butterfly is a member of the Grass-skipper family and I found it on the Canon City Riverwalk in a very wet area. That fits the habitat for this species that prefers "wet brushy areas in prairies or open foothills" according to Butterflies through Binoculars-The West.

This particular butterfly appears to be a female (ah, I bet some of you didn't realize that you could tell some butterflies apart by gender). Females have "wider boarders and darker markings" than males per Butterlies and moths of North America web site, a great online reference with lots of info and photos.

SeEtta

Why bird southeast Colorado?

From our high montane areas to the riparian areas along the Arkansas River as it exits Colorado, southeast Colorado offers birding opportunities for beginners to those serious birders who seek out the less common species. We have great shortgrass and sandsage prairie birding including public areas on the Comanche National Grasslands. We have wetlands including playa lakes (playas are important shallow, depressional wetlands that provide essential habitat for waterfowl and many other bird species). We have small lakes (such as Lake Cheraw north of La Junta)and large lakes (such as John Martin Reservoir that encompasses 35 square miles) that host an impressive diversity of bird species. And we have large expanses of pinyon-juniper woodlands with their special birding opportunities.

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SE Colorado Birding

Friday, August 11, 2006

Delaware Skipper-a small butterfly

Why bird southeast Colorado?

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