Sighting for May 15, 2018

15 May 2018

Jill Gorman

Capitol Reef National Park, Lower Pleasant Creek Trail
Wayne County, UT

This trail followed a small stream through a dry, sandy desert. We were surprised to see hundreds of butterflies, including 6 Variegated Fritillaries laying eggs on Broom Flax (Linum aristatum) and Field Crescents coupling. We saw no other butterflies during other hikes in the park, but this trail was full of them! We also saw thousands of milkweeds (Showy and Utah), so I would imagine that Monarchs will be there soon!