Saturday, June 28, 2014

Walking in a flutter of white


When I went out the front door this morning to take some mail to the mailbox, I was surrounded by dozens of small, white butterflies or moths.  I went online to identify them, and while I found pictures of many white butterflies and moths native to Wisconsin, none quite matched up. At first, I thought they might be Small Cabbage Whites, but the markings on those are black and these are clearly rusty brown. I took this photo, which is a bit out of focus, but you get the idea. The wingspan is about half an inch.

Later in the summer, small yellow Clouded Sulphurs will cover the roads and fields for a few days. That was the effect these little whites had, but they are not Clouded Sulphurs.

Did you know that a group of butterflies is called a flutter? Or a flight, swarm, kaleidoscope or rabble. A group of moths is called an eclipse.
------------------
UPDATE: With more patience, I have tentatively identified this as a White Slant-Wing Moth -- Tetracis cachexiata.

No comments: