Peter Loshin
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hellopatty.bsky.social
Peter Loshin
@hellopatty.bsky.social
300 followers 530 following 76 posts
Butterflies are good; nazis are bad.

I take pictures of butterflies.

he/him
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hellopatty.bsky.social
I misspoke: we've been seeing Giant Swallowtails here since 2012. Here's two photos of one that came by in 2022.

Here's a video of a Giant Swallowtail that came by our garden in 2013: youtu.be/ZhOu2suzV_M

#butterfly #butterflies #insects
Dorsal view of Giant Swallowtail butterfly, shows the patterns of yellow stripes: one straight across the back and another looping down along the lower edges of the hind wings. Nectaring on phlox, a purple flower. This is the largest butterfly commonly seen in Massachusetts. Side view of Giant Swallowtail butterfly, shows the pattern of yellow stripe along the upper side of the left wing, with the ventral view of the right wing mostly yellow with black lines and some blue and orange cells in the hind wing. Nectaring on phlox, a purple flower. This is the largest butterfly commonly seen in Massachusetts.
August 17, 2025 at 7:17 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
A better #butterfly week here: fewer wasps and if not way more #butterflies, we got some nice big ones. 1-3 each of Monarchs, black swallowtails, tiger swallowtails, most days -- but today, we got a Giant Swallowtail. Unusual this close to Boston but we've been seeing them every year since 2014.
A very large yellow and black butterfly nectaring on a zinnia flower. A very large yellow and black swallowtail butterfly, nectaring on a butterfly bush flower.
August 16, 2025 at 9:07 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Snowberry Clearwing moths are also sometimes known as "bumblebee moths" because ... they kind of look like bumblebees. Yours looks like a Hummingbird Moth -- which is also awesome!

Snowberry Clearwing caterpillars host on Snowberry plants, btw.
Looking vaguely like a bumblebee, the Snowberry Clearwing Moth hovers near a purple flower. Wings are mostly clear, except for dark ribs and edges. Snowberry Clearwing Moth hovers near a purple flower.
August 8, 2025 at 8:07 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
The Common Buckeye #butterfly is one of my favorites, so it's always nice to see a fresh one like this. Once in a while we'll see one in our yard, but more often we can see them at a nearby conservation area.

#commonbuckeye #insects #butterflies #pollinators #ButterflyWeek
A Common Buckeye butterfly, perched on a wildflower and showing the dorsal view of its wings -- which includes a pair of BIG eyes.
August 7, 2025 at 2:18 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Most of the skippers we see around here are small, brownish and nondescript, so it's always a treat to see a #SilverSpottedSkipper: large (for a skipper) and with that white marking that sometimes catches the sun and flashes like silver.

#insects #butterflies #pollinators #ButterflyWeek
Silver-spotted Skipper butterfly hanging from a small blue flower, dipping its proboscis in for some nectar. A plump Silver-spotted Skipper standing upright on butterfly bush flowers, dipping its proboscis in for a sip of nectar.
August 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Lovely!

It's always surprising to see familiar species that are also seen across the ocean. Red Admiral, but also Painted Lady, European (Essex) Skipper, and others.
Painted Lady butterfly, wings spread to show the upper side which is a pattern of black and white spots and strips layered over an orange base.
August 6, 2025 at 4:09 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
It's Tuesday of #butterflyweek, but the butterflies have not been exactly flocking around me for the past few weeks.

We did get a new species to our garden recently, number 49: a Tawny-edged Skipper.
A Tawny-edged Skipper, a small brown skipper butterfly, standing on a swamp milkweed (I think) leaf.
August 6, 2025 at 12:01 AM
hellopatty.bsky.social
I've been out of the loop, but here's some #RedAdmiral action for the first day of #butterflyweek (which was yesterday).

Can anyone point me to the schedule for today/rest of the week?

#butterflies
Red Admiral butterfly with wings spread and seen from above. Sitting on some green leaves, this butterfly is very fresh. Mostly black wings, with a partial ring of red band around the edges of the wings. Another view of a fresh Red Admiral butterfly, standing on a leaf with wings up and seen in profile. A little bit of red is visible on the upper wing, but otherwise it looks almost like a paisley pattern on the ventral side of the lower wing.
August 5, 2025 at 7:03 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
The Squash Vine Borer #Moth is a cool little wasp mimic AND a glassy-wing day-flying moth. It's a pest if you grow squash, but it's also a neat little pollinator.

Like other glassywings, it hovers mostly and I got lucky with this shot to freeze it, wings fully open, over Swamp #Milkweed flowers.
Squash Vine Borer Moth, a moth that looks like a wasp, nectaring on Swamp Milkweed flowers. Wings are transparent except for some black veins.
July 22, 2025 at 12:21 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
A "new for the year" #butterfly in the garden, this Broad-winged Skipper is larger than most other grass skippers. Caterpillars have adapted to host on invasive phragmites grasses, so they are pretty common in some unlikely places. We see one or two most years in our garden.
Light brown skipper butterfly standing on butterfly bush flowers with wings up, showing veined underside with lighter fringe trimming the wing's back edges. The Broad-winged Skipper is larger than most other grass skippers.
July 22, 2025 at 12:09 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Northern Broken Dash skippers have been one of the more reliable species to visit our garden this year, but even they have been sparse on the ground: usually just one or two/day.

I would say most #butterflies are plain like this NBD rather than flashy -- but they are still all beautiful.
Small brown skipper butterfly standing on a green leaf.
July 22, 2025 at 12:04 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Not a #butterfly but I still love these Snowberry Clearwing aka Bumblebee #moths. I'm getting much better at resetting my shutter speed to "fast" (1/1000th or faster) to catch the detail of the clear wings -- and that fantastic proboscis (tongue) spiraling out to sip nectar while hovering.
Snowberry Clearwing moth hovering next to a purple flower, proboscis (tongue) spiraling out toward the nectar. This moth can look (sometimes more than) a little like a bumblebee, and is often known as a "bumblebee moth".
July 19, 2025 at 9:08 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Yesterday I missed a very fresh Red-Spotted Purple #butterfly -- but I saw *this* one today. One of the more gorgeous #butterflies we can hope to see, this is the second year in a row we've seen at least one near our apple tree -- which is a host plant for the caterpillars.
A very fresh Red-spotted Purple butterfly resting on a branch as it dries out its wings. You can see the slight curling of the upper and lower corners of the right upper wing.
July 19, 2025 at 9:02 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Spotted this fresh American Lady #butterfly the other day at the next town over. It was very hot that day, but the #butterflies seemed to be fairly active: I saw about a dozen different species at the nearby conservation area.
An American Lady butterfly, perching on a frilly purple and and white flower, sipping nectar.
July 17, 2025 at 3:22 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
One of the least flamboyant of #butterflies, this Dun Skipper is still quite elegant. A small and plain #butterfly, I love the elegance of its subtle frill along the trailing edges of its wings.
Small brown skipper butterfly sipping nectar from a frilly flower.
July 17, 2025 at 3:17 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Not many #butterflies here at my home garden, but we usually 1-2 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. After many years of trying, I'm finally getting the hang of photographing them.
Hummingbird hovering near a bright red Bee Balm flower.
July 17, 2025 at 3:14 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Broad-winged Skipper #butterflies out in force near my house over a former landfill now covered with soccer fields. As many as 6 of these guys were flying on a big unmowed grassy hill.

This #butterfly adapted to host on invasive phragmites grasses, but prefer natives like milkweed for nectaring.
Broad-winged Skipper -- triangular and light brown -- nectaring on yellow tansy flower, joined by honeybee. Light-brown Broad-winged Skipper butterfly, hanging upside down and nectaring on milkweed flowers.
July 17, 2025 at 3:12 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
A distinctive skipper with decidedly elegant appearance: mustard-yellow wings, with lighter-colored body shaded to off white at the bottom. The Delaware Skipper #butterfly is easy to differentiate from other similar skipper #butterflies because of it's minimalist look.

Spotted in a nearby town.
Small skipper butterfly hanging from a small flower, dipping its proboscis for a sip of nectar. Mustard yellow wings without pattern (other than vascular patterns) and a plump white body.
July 15, 2025 at 12:11 AM
hellopatty.bsky.social
American Copper #butterfly. The first time I saw one, I was transfixed; I had no idea how common they were. Now that I've seen many many many of them, I still love to get just one more picture of these adorable little (tiny) #butterflies.
A small butterfly, upper wings of orange with black spots and gray trailing edges; lower fings of gray with smaller black spots and orange trailing edge. Standing on a leaf, surrounded by plants.
July 15, 2025 at 12:05 AM
hellopatty.bsky.social
I mostly post photos of the more unusual or exotic or uncommon #butterflies I find in my garden or in locations around the state, but I forgot that even the most common #butterfly, like this American Lady, can be breathtaking.
The American Lady butterfly stands on a stick next to some small white flowers. Two eyes adorn the trailing edge of the lower wing, and a small bug flies nearby.
July 15, 2025 at 12:00 AM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Our second hairstreak #butterfly in the garden this year. This Striped Hairstreak, lounging on a vine, gave me just 15 seconds to take its picture before it flew off.

The first Striped Hairstreak we've seen in our garden, it brings us to a total of 48 species of #butterflies here since 2014.
Small brownish-gray butterfly, with some stripes, a blue and orange "eye" at the rear corner of its hindwing and some bits of orange around that, perching on a vine leaf.
July 14, 2025 at 8:59 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Monarch #butterflies are the divas in our yard. This one landed on a garden stake, gave me ~5 seconds of attitude and flew off.

More often, the Monarchs are mostly nectaring on our liatris (not yet flowering), common milkweed (done flowering) or #butterfly bush.
Monarch butterfly posing on the spherical metal top of a garden stake, showing the underside of its wings.
July 14, 2025 at 8:50 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Duskywings are among the first #butterflies to appear in the spring around here. Earlier in the spring, I could see dozens of Juvenal's Duskywings in this nearby conservation area--and then, none.

Glad to see this Wild Indigo Duskywing #butterfly, last week, the first I've gotten a good look at.
Small, dark brown butterfly drinking nectar while hanging from a yellow flower. An ovipositor is visible at the tip of its abdomen. Small dark brown butterfly standing on a large green leaf.
July 9, 2025 at 2:10 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Sometimes, when you're looking for #butterflies, you see #dragonflies. This gorgeous Halloween Pennant followed me down hill yesterday, and kept holding this pose every time I stopped. How could I resist?
Large dragonfly, clinging with five legs (perhaps the sixth is missing?) to the top of a dried stem. Large, shiny eye, long abdomen and broadly-striped wings held akimbo.
July 9, 2025 at 1:37 PM
hellopatty.bsky.social
Dion Skipper #butterflies have no business nectaring on a button bush near our front porch. They belong in or near wetlands, not our yard.

I'd never seen one before last week-but this was my SECOND sighting: my first was just two days before, ~75 miles west.

#butterfly species #47 for our garden.
A richly colored brown skipper butterfly, nectaring on a button bush flower. Although it is one of the larger grass skippers seen in our region, the Dion Skipper is still quite small. And while, like so many other grass skippers, it's color is "brown", it is a more saturated brown than most. Mostly darker brown, with "flashes" on the hind wing underside that run from the thorax to the far edge of the hindwing: one, along the bottom of the wing, the other through the middle (this one doesn't quite reach the rear edge of the wing). Two lighter dots can be seen on the upper wing; the coloring is quite saturated and when flying it may look the color of shiny copper penny.
July 9, 2025 at 12:56 PM