More butterfly garden success: Red-banded Hairstreak

Red-banded Hairstreak Calycopis cecrops, Maryland, July 2011.

I was pleased to find a couple of Red-banded Hairstreaks Calycopis cecrops in the yard this past weekend. Neither were seen actively feeding – just resting close to the ground, like this one.

Also a first for the yard were a couple of male Zabulon Skippers Poanes zabulon:

Zabulon Skipper Poanes zabulon, male, Maryland, July 2011.

I find the skippers mostly very difficult (and frustrating!) to identify, but the patchwork of gold and brown on the underside of the hindwing make male Zabulons pretty distinctive. The female Zabulon is a much darker and very different-looking butterfly – here’s an image from early June this year, taken at Patuxent River Park in Maryland:

Zabulon Skipper Poanes zabulon, female, Maryland, June 2011.