NABA's MISSION STATEMENT:
To promote nonconsumptive, recreational butterflying and to increase the public's enjoyment, knowledge and conservation of butterflies.

***********************************************************

We have quite a few activities lined up for August and September and hope you enjoy them.  Please refer to the events below for details, or view the calendar page.

Two new gardens will be open for visits by us this summer - Tom Krauska (Aug. 4) and Anne McCormack (Sept. 8).  You won't want to miss these.  Anne's garden got a write up in the local journal last year.  On Aug. 10, there will be a second butterfly walk at Mark Peters' prairie.  Since our last visit in June, many more flowers will be in bloom and more species of butterflies should be seen.  There is plenty to see just by walking along the gravel road at the edge of the prairie.  On Aug. 18, we will be at Busch, first for some weeding in the Butterfly Garden, then for a butterfly walk.  Our last Count of the season will be held on Aug. 24 at Horseshoe Lake, followed by a pool party at Torrey & Lee Berger's home. 

The "Local Butterflies" class will again be offered at Meramec Community College on Sept. 12 and 19.  The butterfly walk on Sept. 21 at Busch is open to both students and NABA members.  Other events of interest are Bug Day at Babler State Park on Aug. 3 and the Butterfly House Fall Festival on Sept. 28 & 29.  NABA will have display tables at both events.  Starting in the fall, we will begin our indoor programs.  We hope to again plan visits to the Butterfly House and the Zoo Insectarium during the winter months.  Stay tuned for more information on these and other activities.

Aug. 4, Sunday, 10:00 a.m., Butterfly Garden Visit at Tom Krauska's house. For directions or more information, e-mail Yvonne Homeyer or Tom Krauska (tom@tomterrific.com)

Aug. 10, Saturday, 9:00 a.m., Butterfly Walk at Mark Peters' prairie, 5435 Lions Den Spur (which comes off of Lions Den Road).  Butterflies can be easily seen by walking along the road at the edge of the prairie.  It is not necessary to walk into the grass.  We will see some new species that were not flying when we last visited his prairie on June 1.  For directions, e -mail Yvonne Homeyer (homeyer@earthlink.net)

Aug. 18, Sunday, 8:00 a.m., Gardening Experience (helping hands needed) and 9:30 a.m. Butterfly Walk at Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden, Busch Conservation Area. Questions? Please call Dennis Bozzay.

Aug. 24, Saturday, 9:30 a.m. - 4th of July Butterfly Count, Horseshoe Lake State Park, Illinois.
Meet at the parking lot across the causeway of Horseshoe Lake (on the Hwy. 111 side.) To get there, cross the Poplar St. Bridge and stay on I-55/70 for 3 to 4 miles. Take the exit marked Hwy. 111. Go north on 111 and in about 3 miles you will see the entrance to Horseshoe Lake S.P. on your left. Turn in (left) and go straight toward the lake, then turn left at the lake. This road parallels the lake a short distance and then crosses a causeway. At the end of the causeway, there is a gravel parking lot on your left; we will meet at the parking lot. Restrooms are available. There is a $3 fee charged to each participant by NABA for publication of the Count results. There will be a pool party after the count at the Bergers' house (for details, e-mail Yvonne Homeyer (homeyer@earthlink.net).

Sept. 8, Sunday, 11:00 a.m., Butterfly Garden Visit at Anne McCormack's house.

Sept. 21,  Saturday, 9:45 a.m.,  Butterfly Walk, Busch C.A., meet at the Butterfly Garden near the headquarters/Visitors Center.  All chapter members are welcome.  Students from the Local Butterflies class will also participate.

***********************************************************

Everyone is invited to bring their lunch and suit to Torrey and Lee Berger's for a swim after the butterfly count on August 24.  For directions or more information, e-mail Yvonne Homeyer (homeyer@earthlink.net).  We hope everyone can come!

We had an enthusiastic group for the 4th of July Count at Busch Conservation Area in St. Charles County on July 7.  Jim Ziebol, Kraig Paradise, Jeannie Moe, Yvonne Homeyer, Torrey Berger, Ann Earley, Bob Siemer, Dale & Nancy Delaney, Margaret Gilleo, Chuck Guenther, Kathy Thiele, and Scott Goldman participated in the Count.  Details will appear in the September newsletter.

Butterflies floating all around us, flitting from flower to flower  - Spicebush, Tigers, Black Swallowtails, Orange Sulphurs, Silver-spotted Skippers, Monarchs, Viceroys.  Swarms of Eastern Tailed-Blues puddling.  A surprise Clouded Skipper tucked in the shade, perched on a leaf.  A breathtaking Bronze Copper. Tawny Emperors outnumbering Hackberries.  A Wood-Nymph perched on watermelon at a butterfly feeding station.  There was a constant progression as the day wore on.  American Lady and Painted Lady appeared in the afternoon, as did Variegated Fritillary, Checkered White, and Peck's Skipper.  A buffet of habitat - garden beds, wetlands, prairie - was available for the butterflies to choose from.  And all of this thanks to the efforts of Richard and Susan Day, who have created a butterfly sanctuary on their property in rural Marion County, just outside Salem, Illinois.  

The Days have many host plants, such as Swamp Milkweed, Spicebush, Pipevine, Paw Paw, Hackberry, Tulip tree, and grasses, as well as a wide variety of nectaring flowers.  Richard and Susan sponsored this 4th of July Count on July 14.  Dianne Benjamin and I drove from St. Louis and Judith Joy came from Centralia.  Judith played a dual role, covering the Count as a reporter for the Centralia newspaper.  (A reporter from the Effingham paper attended as well).  NABA members are welcome. They said it just gets better as the summer goes on!  Most of the Count took place on their property, but we also surveyed Forbes State Park.  By the end of the day, 39 species and 488 individuals had been seen.  Here are the results:

Pipevine Swallowtail - 1 Common Buckeye - 6
Black Swallowtail - 11 Red-spotted Purple - 3
Tiger Swallowtail - 17 Viceroy - 9
Spicebush Swallowtail - 27 Hackberry Emperor - 3
Checkered White - 3 Tawny Emperor - 7
Cabbage White - 16 Northern Pearly-eye - 3
Orange Sulphur - 33       Little Wood Satyr - 7
Cloudless Sulphur - 2 Common Wood-Nymph - 1
Little Yellow - 2       Monarch - 11
Bronze Copper - 1 Silver-spotted Skipper - 41
Gray Hairstreak - 1 Horace's Duskywing - 1
Eastern Tailed-Blue - 125 Clouded Skipper - 1
Summer Azure - 4 Least Skipper - 73
American Snout - 8 Fiery Skipper - 1
Variegated Fritillary - 2 Peck's Skipper - 3
Great Spangled Fritillary - 11 Northern Broken-Dash - 3
Pearl Crescent - 18 Little Glassywing - 23
Question Mark - 2 Sachem - 2
Eastern Comma - 1 American Lady - 1
Painted Lady - 4

SHAWNEE HILLS BUTTERFLY COUNT

Kathy Phelps has been organizing and running the Shawnee Hills Butterfly Count for 12 years.  A full description of the results of this count will be printed in the September newsletter.

On Thursday, Sept. 12 and Sept. 19, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., a "Local Butterflies" class will be held at Meramec Community College.    Part I will be taught by Dr. Tom Bratkowski, an entomologist and NABA member.  Part II will be taught by Jim Ziebol and Yvonne Homeyer.  Course includes a field trip on Sat. Sept. 21 (see Coming Events item above).  To register, call the Office of Continuing Education at 314-984-7777.

Dennis Bozzay will be teaching two butterfly gardening classes this fall.  The first will be on Thursday, September 26, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Pattonville West High School (offered through UMSL).  The second will be Thursday, October 3, 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. at Fox High School in Arnold (offered through Jefferson College).  Please call Dennis if you have any questions ((314) 968-2714).

NABA has enacted and is carrying out an Action Plan to save the Miami Blue, a butterfly reduced to only a single colony.  Until a NABA member found this colony recently, the Miami Blue was thought to be extinct.  Despite its critical peril, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, charged with enforcing the Endangered Species Act, has refused to emergency-list the Miami Blue as endangered.  Such status would obligate the federal government to protect it.  NABA has therefore stepped forward with its own Action Plan, at its own expense, to save the Miami Blue (see latest issue of American Butterflies, inside front cover).  Your Board has authorized a chapter donation of $100 to the Miami Blue Fund, started by NABA to finance these efforts.  If you would like to make an individual contribution, send it to: NABA, 4 Delaware Road, Morristown, NJ 07960.

The July Butterfly Report will be included in the next newsletter.

VISIT OUR WEB SITE at www.naba.org/chapters/nabasl/stlouis.htm. Dave Larson is our Webmaster.

YOUR OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS:
President Yvonne Homeyer
Vice President Dianne Benjamin
Secretary Ann Earley
Treasurer Tom Krauska
Butterfly Gardening Dennis Bozzay
Conservation Jim Ziebol
Education Linda Virga
Membership Ann Earley
Newsletter Scott Marshall
Public Relations Anne Craver
Walks & Counts Jim Ziebol
Webmaster Dave Larson

If you have questions or suggestions, e-mail Yvonne Homeyer
(homeyer@earthlink.net).

NEWSLETTER ITEMS WELCOME
If you have a newsletter item (announcement, article, useful information, funny story, etc.), please pass it on to the Newsletter Editor, Scott Marshall at (314) 961-0977, Scottmarshll@cs.com.

If you or someone you know would like to become a member of the St. Louis Chapter of NABA, please fill out this application:

Name _____________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________
City _______________________ State _______ Zip_________
Phone ( ) _______________ e-mail _________________

Dues are $30 (regular) and $40 (family) per year. Please make check payable to NORTH AMERICAN BUTTERFLY ASSOCIATION.
Please mail this form with your check to: NABA-St. Louis Secretary, 1425 Bobolink, St. Louis, MO 63144.

***********************************************************