During the last week I helped lead a birding tour of West Virginia. Over 5 days we covered the state starting in Harper’s Ferry ending in the New River Gorge area of Fayette county. Birding highlights were 28 species of warblers, Red-headed Woodpecker, Red Crossbill, Henslow’s Sparrow and Olive-sided Flycatcher. Incidental butterfly observations during the trip totaled 26 species with the lep highlights being Baltimore Checkerspot, Pink-edged Sulphur and my first Diana Fritillaries in West Virginia. It was a great trip overall. Rains from the remnants of Tropical Storm Bill occured Saturday night. Otherwise, we dodged scattered thunderstorms almost every day. Temperatures highs ranged from between 73 and 91 degrees. The aggregate trip list is below:
6-18 thru 6-22 - WV Silver-spotted Skipper Wild Indigo Duskywing European Skipper Long Dash Zebra Swallowtail Appalachian Tiger Swallow Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Spicebush Swallowtail Cabbage White Clouded Sulphur Orange Sulphur Pink-edged Sulphur Banded Hairstreak Gray Hairstreak Eastern Tailed-Blue Summer Azure Diana Fritillary Great Spangled Fritillary Atlantis Fritillary Meadow Fritillary Hackberry Emperor Pearl Crescent Baltimore Checkerspot Eastern Comma Mourning Cloak Little Wood-Satyr