[EBB Sightings] awash with painted ladys and a question?

Phila et al.,
Redwood Regional Park and Mills College are also loaded with Painted 
Ladies.  I'm sure these are mostly a the results of a fresh, locally 
hatched brood.  One of the favorite larval food plants seems to be 
thistles and I have noticed many larvae on thistles on trails in Redwood 
and other local sites lately.  The larvae spin a silky tent-like structure 
around themselves. By the way, there is a new field guide to caterpillars, 
part of the Butterflies through binoculars series.

John H. Harris
Professor of Biology
Mills College
5000 MacArthur Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94613
(510) 430-2027
johnh at mills.edu


On Tue, 7 Jun 2005, Phila Rogers wrote:

> Dear Friends:
> In the Berkeley Hills we mostly missed out on the first legendary painted lady migration a few months back.  But in the last few days they are everywhere favoring especially the cotoneaster now in bloom.  On one bush there appeared to be more butterflies than flowers.  In my view nothing gives a day more liveliness than an abundance of butterflies.  Unlike the earlier butterflies that appeared somewhat tattered and dull, this new crop looks freshly minted.  I am guessing that this is a second hatch -- the progeny of the adults that came to us earlier from the southern deserts.  Is this correct?
> Not much to report on the doings those with feathered wings.  The Nuttall's woodpecker that nested for the second year in a nearby eucalyptus fledged a single offspring.  An olive-sided flycatcher called for a few days last week and now is quiet.
> Last Sunday my companion and I (who relies on a motorized scooter for his mobility) found a wonderful new birding spot redolent with history as well as birds.  It's the Dunsmuir House in East Oakland just off H 580 and its 50-acre of grounds.  Though I saw and heard them only briefly, I believe a pair of hooded orioles have set up housekeeping in one of the 100-year old palms.  Thanks to a large pond and a stream that runs through the property, we heard a warbling vireo and watched a black phoebe at the pond.  An olive-sided flycatcher called almost continuously from one of the tall trees.
> If you continue down past the elegant and well-maintained mansion, you come to several handsome outbuildings which appeared to have made the transition from the era of horse-drawn carriage to automobiles.
> We hope to put together a list and description of various good birding places for those requiring scooters or wheelchairs and would appreciate suggestions from others.
> Let this glorious June weather continue -- cold wind and all.
> Phila Rogers