Rare Butterfly Alert and a PSA

A local birder has reported seeing a Giant Swallowtail butterfly at the Clock Farm. A good birder, this gentleman said he has checked three field guides to confirm his observation. This butterfly is an extremely rare migrant to Massachusetts. The online Massachusetts Audubon Butterfly Atlas considers it so rare that it reports observations going back to the 1870's. The Massachusetts Butterfly Club notes a July17, 1999 observation in Berkshire County as "recent."

This butterfly is hard to confuse with other swallowtails. It's big with a wingspan up to 6 1/4 inches. It is brown while most other dark swallowtails are black. The bow shape on the upper wing is absolutely distinctive. I'm very skeptical, but an 1883 report noted that one was seen in Sharon. "Incursions," probably from the mid-Atlantic states, were noted in the 1870's and 1880's. If you see this butterfly, you should make every effort to photograph it and report it to the Massachusetts  Audubon Society or give me a call at Sheep Pasture 508-238-6049.

 Here's a picture of a male Black Swallowtail, a common resident, note the lack of the white "bow string" found on the Giant Swallowtail:

Waiting for the stock market to open to see how much damage our inept politicians have done to us.