spritelink's Favorites

Nectaring at hosta flowers. Large and long-winged, with a very "skipping" flight. Wings always closed while feeding. Incredibly long proboscis. Seemed to be visiting this patch of hostas regularly. There is canna planted nearby -- might we be so lucky to get a breeding attempt?

Stunned to see this tiny marvel in my favorite local dogbane patch around noon today. I saw a small blue fluttering over the flowers and assumed it was Cupido or Celastrina, but when it landed, I could see the bold ventral pattern and smaller size. The creature was very jittery, startled into the air frequently by the many wasps and bees and by my own movements. On the wing, it flashed clear, pale blue. I managed a couple of poor photos with my phone before it disappeared. I pulled out my DSLR and hunted the area for an hour or so but couldn’t find it again.

The ventral forewing pattern seems to match L. cassius, but apparently there is a “light” form of L. marina, which is a species believed to be a more frequent vagrant?

@hpavulaan @nlblock @spritelink @susanhewitt @nycbirder @maractwin @wayne_fidler @d2b @kennkaufman

Guarding territory, frequently chasing a patrolling Spicebush Swallowtail and sometimes getting tangled up in the Hackberry Emperor fights too. Perching a foot or two off the ground, or at ground level. Spectacular iridescence -- just jaw-dropping. Very shallow, flat-winged flight and noticeably rounded forewings.

This tree is on the west side Central Park next to the bridle path at approximately 76th street, northwest of Hernshead.
Not Green and not White, I hesitate to suggest excelsior because the bud looks dark brown to me (with a suede-like surface); all descriptions say jet-black. Leaf scars more half-moon than crescent, though some tops slightly concave. Though the samaras suggest nigra, the leaves lack thick hairs where the leaflets meet the rachis (and probability is low in this location anyway as per the NYC Ecoflora Treatment of Fraxinus). There is however a reddish-brown color visible where the leaflets meets the rachis and additionally when the underside of the leaflets are viewed through a 10x lens there are sparse pale hairs visible, mostly concentrated along the base of the midrib for ~3/4", but also occurring nearby. The last photo gives some indication of these hairs.
Didn't see any fungi or lichen but was standing behind fence with only phone for photos.