Can
you identify what's in this photo?
Each Wednesday morning
on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page
the Lutherlyn Environmental
Education Program posts a photo.
Readers
have all morning and afternoon
to
make their best guess about what the photo is.
Around
6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.
Each
week's What is it Wednesday post
will
also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog,
after it is posted on Facebook,
sometimes
with additional bonus information.
In
addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday
on the
Nature of Lutherlyn blog,
we
will be reposting old editions,
creating
a What is it Wednesday archive.
This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on
August 26, 2020.
And
the answer is....
This is the underside of the hindwing of a male tiger
swallowtail butterfly.
Tiger swallowtails are large yellow butterflies with black markings. The males have subtle blue and orange markings near the tail of the upper side (dorsal side) of their hindwing. (These may be hard to spot, or may even get broken off or worn off during its lifetime.)
The females have more prominent blue markings in the same area. Both males and females have additional orange and blue markings on the underside (ventral side) of the hindwing. (The female has more orange than blue here.) There is also a female color variation that is mostly black with blue markings.
4. ventral male; 5. ventral female; 6. ventral female (dark morph)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en
The tiger swallowtail is a generalist , feeding on many
different types of plants as both larvae and adults, so it is common and seen
frequently in many habitats throughout Eastern North America. Though common,
their size and bright colors make them a stunning sight!
Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on
Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when
they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!
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