Monday, October 18, 2010

Red-banded Hairstreak, Again

When I first spotted this insect in a bunch of asters, I thought it was moth because all I saw was a brownish triangle. Moving closer, I realized it was actually a hairstreak butterfly, in this case a Red-banded Hairstreak. It looks a lot browner than most other members of this species I have seen, which tend to be predominantly gray, like this one. I know that some butterflies have brownish fall variants, but I have not found any confirmation that this species does.

The flowers are most likely calico asters, which have both yellow and purple centers.