#Asterocampa celtis

[blattodean]

hackberry emperor? im not very familiar with butterflies

[mars-0326]

Rip little guy. Victim of the hurricane rains.

[stopandlook]

Scientific Name: Asterocampa celtis Common Name(s): Hackberry emperor Family: Nymphalidae (brush-footed butterfly) Life Stage(s): Adult Location: Plano, Texas Season(s): Summer

[jays-nature-photography]

[ichneumoniid]

Potato chip

(Asterocampa celtis)

[bug-maniac]

Some bug IDs I did for a friend recently. If you have any other suggestions, let me know because I'm still new at this! (All found in southwest Arkansas.)

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa)

Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis)

Midland clubtail (Gomphurus fraternus) Note: Unsure about ID on the first one, I'm confident of the second one though

American house spider (Parasteatoda tepidariorum) Note: Again, not confident on this one, but it seemed like the best match.

Zebra swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)

Some sort of harvestman (Opiliones)

Small American copper (Lycaena phlaeas) Note: Someone else says it's a question mark butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis) and I am forced to concede their victory 😭

Hackberry emperor (Asterocampa celtis)

Cottonwood borer (Plectrodera scalator)

[todaysbug]

December 14th, 2023

Hackberry Emperor (Asterocampa celtis)

Distribution: Found in the Eastern half of North America, up to eastern Canada and down to Mexico. Especially common along the east coast, from Florida to New England.

Habitat: Found wherever there are hackberry trees; cities, forests and wooded areas, near creeks, woodland edges, buildings and damp, muddy areas. Most common around water sources.

Diet: Caterpillars feed on the leaves and buds of hackberry trees; adults are generalists, feeding on hackberry sap, feces, carrion and fruit, as well as flower nectar. Will also occasionally drink human sweat for sodium intake.

Description: Unlike most butterfly species, the hackberry emperor rarely feeds on nectar, instead drawing most of its nutrients from other sources. When it does feed on flowers, it doesn't allow its body to touch the flower with the exception of its proboscis. This makes the hackberry emperor an ineffective pollinator, so it's often called a cheater organism.

After she's mated, the female hackberry emperor lays her eggs in clusters of 5 to 20 eggs. Once hatched, the caterpillars are voracious eaters, and can completely defoliate their host trees.

(Images by Jim Taylor and Rita Songer)

[that-crazy-scorpio-man]

Been seeing a lot of hackberry emperors, too.

[metalectra]

Hackberry Emperor

Asterocampa celtis

[dendroica]

Hackberry Emperor, Asterocampa celtis (by me)

[agithaaesthetic-blog]

Hackberry emperor ready for takeoff.

[deathtek]

5/15/19

[grackleclaw]

hackberry emperor butterfly, asterocampa celtis :)

[jays-nature-photography]

[peregrination-studies]

August 30 - day 17

Today I:

Researched a bit for my sustainability project

Prepared articles for class

Read many different books for many hours

Practiced guitar

Practiced French and Spanish

Earlier this evening, I went to the park with my guitar and a collection of songbooks. I claimed a bench and just strummed and sang out to no one in particular. This is the boldest I’ve been since starting this Singing at The Park adventure a few months ago, and I’m proud of myself for learning to break out of my comfort zone. :) (Picture descriptions: Left: a hackberry emperor butterfly (Asterocampa celtis) on a nearby bit of overgrown velvet ash (Fraxinus velutina). Right: my guitar propped up against a park bench and awash in golden hour light.)

🎧Listening to: You’re So Vain by Carly Simon

📖Reading: Biomimicry (Benyus) + The War of The Worlds (Wells) + The Upcycle (William McDonough and Michael Braungart)

[speakingofnature]

Much of Iowa is experiencing exploding numbers of Hackberry Emperor (Asterocampa celtis) butterflies. Many have been observed feeding on the flowers of our linden tree as well as the backyard flowers.