Sighting for April 20, 2021
Tom Fiore, Kristine Wallstrom
Kakiat Park - mtn. trail & higher elev. power line
Rockland County, NY
- Eastern Tiger Swallowtail 1
- Cabbage White 8+
- Falcate Orangetip 8+
- Orange Sulphur 1
- Brown Elfin 3
- Spring Azure 6++
- Pearl Crescent 1
- Mourning Cloak 7
- Juvenal's Duskywing 1
New Sighting
A county park in the township of Montebello NY. This adjoins the far-larger Harriman State Park, which takes up parts of 2 NYS counties. Trail we used accesses that larger park, but we hiked just the county park portions, as well as power-line right-of-way that the trail crosses. The majority of species seen were on or close to that power line and require some steep hiking to reach. The Falcate Orangetips & Brown Elfins in particular are likely found almost only on the higher terrain with their host plants, at this park. Sun with temp. to 70+ F., strong SW breezes, on which the Orange Sulphur seen seemed to fly along. Many native wildflowers in bloom or about to. The Tiger Swallowtail & Pearl Crescent were our firsts of the year. We did not linger later in the day, when a chance of other nymphalids might have been better - such as Red Admiral, E. Comma, Lady species, or the rarer, but formerly-regular at this park, Compton Tortoiseshell. Also seen at this site was the tiger beetle Cicindela limbalis, which is regular on trails, rocks in the higher elevations there.