One of the many wildflowers growing along the drive at Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
April 14, 2022
Pink Thistle Bloom
Tag Archives: Thistle
Skipper Butterfly on Thistle
Parts of Black Point Wildlife Drive were lined with thistle when I was there in mid-April. Most of the blooms had gone by, but a few were on a different schedule.
A few Skippers were taking full advantage.
Most of the plants looked like some variation of this.
Black Point Wildlife Drive
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, FL
April 12, 2022
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Thistle, Year 2
About a mile or so from where I saw the Black Swallowtail Butterflies for my post from March of 2020 I saw a similar scene April 12.
This year’s thistle flowers were a bit past their prime.
And the butterfly was showing some signs of wear, or a battle.
The wing tears did not impair his mobility, as he nimbly circled around the plant checking each of the spidery blooms.
Thistle Releasing Its Seeds
An early bloomer, this thistle was all done with it’s reproduction by the first of June.
And a look at this thistle’s flower in full bloom.
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Thistle
A patch of thistle was growing at the edge of a parking area at Santee National Wildlife Refuge, Cuddo Unit. I suspect it was planted or at least encouraged by human intervention: it was a little too neat to be just wild.
An assortment of insects were working the thistle blooms, with a Black Swallowtail standing out.
The blooms were in all stages of development, some well on their way to releasing seeds for a new crop.
