Subject:  Butterfly
Geographic location of the bug:  Southwest Florida
Date: 01/10/2020
Time: 03:39 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I have identified & photographed well over 100 species of butterflies/moths over many years, but I am at a loss for the name of this beauty, and no amount of research has been successful.  Many thanks for your help!
Respectfully, Kathy Genaw
How you want your letter signed:  Kathy Genaw

Melanistic White Peacock

Dear Kathy,
We too are having a difficult time identifying you Brush Footed Butterfly in the family Nymphalidae.  It looks most to us like the White Peacock, Anartia jatrophae, which can be viewed on BugGuide and on Carolina Nature, and we suspect it is closely related.  It is found in Florida, but though the dorsal side is similar, the ventral side is quite different.  We suspect it might be closely related, and is most likely a tropical species that has found its way to Florida.  Perhaps one of our readers will be able to provide a more conclusive identification.

Melanistic White Peacock

Update:  January 24, 2020
We have received two comments that this is an unusually colored White Peacock.  The darker coloration is known as melanism and both melanic and melanistic are appropriate adjectives to describe this individual.

Dear Daniel,
Many thanks for your follow-up comments regarding my mystery butterfly.  I agree that it resembles the common White Peacock in some ways.  As a matter of fact, my photos indicate that I had photographed one of them nearby.  Perhaps the exact ID of this lovely butterfly in question is actually less important than having had the opportunity to observe and record such a  beautiful flyer!  May such opportunities continue for all of us for a very long time!
My best,
Kathy

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Subject:  Common Buckeye?
Geographic location of the bug:  Central Florida
Date: 08/26/2019
Time: 07:30 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hi!
I was stalking butterflies around my sister’s garden with my camera when visiting her recently in Florida…I snapped a photo of this pretty lady/fellow but discovered I missed getting it with wings open.  Is this a common buckeye?  Thanks!
How you want your letter signed:  Leslie F.

American Lady

Hi Leslie,
This is not a Buckeye.  The two spots on the hind wings are distinguishing features of the American Lady.  Here is a BugGuide image for comparison.

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Subject:  Butterfly near garden
Geographic location of the bug:  Hershey pa
Date: 08/24/2019
Time: 09:23 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I saw this pretty butterfly near my garden. Just wondering what it is?
How you want your letter signed:  Sue Katerman

Hackberry Emperor

Hi Sue,
This is a Hackberry Emperor, which is pictured on BugGuide.  According to BugGuide, the habitat is:  “Deciduous woodlands with hostplant, Hackberry (Celtis).”

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Subject:  Moth? in Michigam
Geographic location of the bug:  Ypsilanti, MI 48198
Date: 08/19/2019
Time: 05:04 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello, looking for help with identification.
How you want your letter signed:  Thank You!!! JO

Questionmark

Dear JO,
This is not a Moth.  It is a newly eclosed butterfly, and that is its chrysalis in the background.  The common name for this butterfly is the Questionmark, a name that refers to the silver ?-shaped mark on the lower wings.

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Subject:  Butterfly or moth
Geographic location of the bug:  Tucson, AZ
Date: 08/09/2019
Time: 03:37 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello,
I saw this butterfly or moth in an orange tree in my friends backyard in Tucson yesterday 8/8/19 around 5pm.
Sent it out to family, but no one knows what it is so far.
My friend fears it could hurt the tree.
If you are able to identify it I’d appreciate knowing what it is and if it takes up residence, could it cause harm and if so, how to encourage gently, to find another home.
Thank you for your service.
All the best,
How you want your letter signed:  Patrick

Hackberry Emperor

Dear Patrick,
Though your images lack critical sharpness, we are relative certain this butterfly is a Hackberry Emperor, Asterocampa celtis, based on this BugGuide image.  We are intrigued with your friend’s irrational fear that a butterfly might pose a threat to the orange tree.  Butterflies generally feed on nectar.  Only in the caterpillar stage when most species feed on leaves would a butterfly pose anything resembling a threat to a tree, and then only if the caterpillars are very plentiful.  Is there a hackberry tree nearby?  Because the caterpillars feed on the leaves of hackberry, BugGuide notes of the habitat preference:  “Varied, but always near Hackberry trees.” 

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Subject:  Leucistic butterfly
Geographic location of the bug:  8 miles SW of Casper, WY
Date: 06/21/2019
Time: 10:46 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Daniel, I thought this leucistic Variable Checkerspot butterfly I photographed 6/14/19 might interest your readers.  I’m including typically marked checkerspots for comparison.
Cheers,
How you want your letter signed:  Dwaine

Leucistic Variable Checkerspot

Dear Dwaine,
We needed to research the term “leucistic” before we could address your submission, and we learned on Merriam Webster that leucanism is “an abnormal condition of reduced pigmentation affecting various animals (such as birds, mammals, and reptiles) that is marked by overall pale color or patches of reduced coloring and is caused by a genetic mutation which inhibits melanin and other pigments from being deposited in feathers, hair, or skin.”  In continuing our research, we found there are no examples of leucistic Variable Checkerspots on BugGuide, nor is there any mention in Jeffrey Glassberg’s Butterflies Through Binoculars The West.  We are thrilled that you have allowed us to publish your images, and also thanks for including an image documenting the normal variations of the Variable Checkerspot, Euphydryas chalcedona.

Leucistic Variable Checkerspot

You are very welcome, and I have the greatest respect for what you do.

Variable Checkerspots

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