Sighting for May 15, 2022

Bright sun and 53° at the start of my session at 2pm with clouds and cooler temperatures as I finished at 3:45pm. I spent all of my time on the west side of the bog in the area where I saw a suspected Northern Spring Azure both days last weekend. My first sighting of today’s session was a light gray female azure fluttering high through the trees but l was unable to get a photo. Later I saw a bright blue male azure flutter across open marsh and land to nectar. Intent on getting photos, I trudged out into the bog after the azure, soaking my boots, socks, and jeans nearly to the knees in cold, muddy water but with success in getting identification shots of the butterfly. I got very good cooperation for photos from a Green Comma (Arctic Anglewing is the local subspecies) and from a Mourning Cloak that at one point decided to alight on my hat. The Milbert’s Tortoishell bustled past me on the trail without pausing, making it my first session of the season where I had sightings of all three of our local overwintering species.