1. UPCOMING NABA PROGRAMS AND EVENTS – June and July 2006:

Beginners and children accompanied by adults are welcome on every butterfly walk and count. Directions are found below, at the end of the Calendar. Water, hat, and sunscreen are recommended for every outing. Tick prevention methods include wearing long pants and using insect repellent. Feel free to invite a friend, or even better, several friends!

Sat. June 17, 10:00 a.m.Butterfly Walk at Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary (near bridge to Alton). Meet at the Visitor’s Center (which will be closed). Leader: Torrey Berger. Riverlands is popular with birders and last year, Torrey led our first butterfly walk to this location, logging 22 species, including Bronze Copper. Torrey has special access to a section of Riverlands that is closed to the public, so take advantage of this outing to explore a new area of Riverlands. If time permits, the walk may extend to Confluence State Park. Bring snacks and/or lunch.

Fri. June 23, 6:30 p.m. Garden tour and social event at Anne McCormack's home. See details in article below.

Sun. June 25, 10:00 a.m.Butterfly walk/count at Busch C. A. Meet at the Butterfly Garden (bottom of parking lot at the Visitor’s Center). Leader: Jim Ziebol. This is the 3 rd Count for the Mo. Dept. of Conservation.

Sun. July 2, 10:00 a.m. *FOURTH OF JULY COUNT* at Busch C. A. , followed by picnic lunch in the pavilion behind the Visitor’s Center, at approximately 1:30 p.m. This is NABA’s official count, held once a year. Participants are grouped in teams and assigned to a particular territory. Each team is led by an experienced member, but participants do not need any special expertise. Busch Wildlife is a large place and we need many teams and eyes to do a thorough count of all the territories. NOTE: Even if you can’t attend the count, please come to the picnic! NABA will supply beverages.

DIRECTIONS:

Riverlands: Take I-270 and exit at Hwy. 367 north. Stay on 367 until just before the Clark Bridge that crosses the river into Alton (do not cross bridge!). At the Fisca gas station on the Missouri side of the bridge, turn right into Riverlands and go straight on the main road. The Visitor’s Center is on the left. The Visitor’s Center is closed on weekends; however, rustic toilets are available along the main road – just continue on about a 1/4 mile beyond the Visitor’s Center.

Anne McCormack’s Home: Please call 314.965.8091 for more information.

Busch Wildlife Conservation Area: From St. Louis County, take I-64 (Hwy 40) across the Missouri River bridge and exit at Hwy. 94. Go left (south) on Hwy 94 approximately 1 mile to Hwy D. Turn right onto Hwy D and go about 1.5 miles to the entrance on your right. Turn right and at the T intersection, turn right again and proceed to the parking lot at the Visitor's Center. Meet at the Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden at the bottom of the parking lot.

2006: Looking Ahead - Butterfly Counts and Walks:

Sun. Aug. 20. Horseshoe Lake 4th of July Butterfly Count.
Sat. Sep. 9. Little Creve Couer Lake Butterfly Walk.
Wed. Sep. 13. Tom & Gloria Bratkowski will talk about their trip to the Monarch wintering grounds in Mexico. 7:00 p.m., Powder Valley.
Sun. Sep. 17. Busch C. A. Butterfly Count for Mo. Dept. of Conservation.
Wed. Oct. 11. Torrey Berger will give a program about his trip to Brazil, 7:00 p.m., Powder Valley.
Sun. Oct. 15. Hilda Young C. A. Butterfly Walk.

2. GREETINGS FROM OUR NEW PRESIDENT by Jim Ziebol

As the new NABA-St. Louis President, I would like to thank Ann Earley, our outgoing president, for her excellent service to our chapter over the past three years. As you know, NABA-St. Louis has many activities, including counts, field trips, programs, classes, and social events. We are able to do all these things because of our outstanding volunteer spirit. I would especially like to thank Dennis Bozzay, Jeannie Moe and Kraig Paradise for keeping the Butterfly Garden at Busch Wildlife in such great condition. Others who have helped with the garden are: Kathy Thiele, Jack Harris, Margaret McGregor, and Gladys Kuhlmann. I would encourage any NABA member who is visiting Busch Wildlife to consider weeding one of the beds or the paths. In addition, Kraig has started several other butterfly gardens in Spanish Lake Park and North County Recreation Center.

I would also like to thank Dave Larson for the terrific job he does with the website and the newsletter. Yvonne Homeyer and Mary Eileen Rufkahr have planned several get-togethers at restaurants which have been very popular. If you would like to talk about anything concerning our chapter, my home number is 314.781.7372.

On Sunday, July 2, our annual 4 th of July Count at Busch Wildlife will take place. Afterwards, we will have a picnic lunch in the pavilion behind the Visitor’s Center, at approximately 1:30 p.m. Even if you can’t attend the count, please come to the picnic. NABA will supply beverages. Thank you.

3. MAY BUTTERFLY SIGHTINGS by Yvonne Homeyer

Late Sightings for April: A Painted Lady showed up at Ron Goetz’s house on 4/20 and Ron found the first Giant Swallowtail at Fults Hills Prairie on 4/22.

May Sightings: On 5/2, a Peck’s Skipper was sunning itself in Ron Goetz’s yard, and several Zabulon Skippers were seen at Busch Conservation Area (DB). A CommonSootywing was a good find on 5/3 at Fountain Lakes Park in St. Charles County (JM). On 5/5, Jim Ziebol saw Giant, Zebra, Tiger, Spicebush and Pipevine Swallowtails, 1 Red-spotted Purple, Horace’s Duskywing, Zabulon Skippers and Bell’s Roadside Skipper at Young C.A., and 2 Red-spotted Purples and Peck’s Skipper at Tyson. He reported Goatweed, Red Admiral, Zabulon and 20 Least Skippers at Horseshoe Lake on 5/6. Despite the sun, the temperature stayed in the 60s and butterfly activity was poor. Five Monarch caterpillars were munching away on Four-leaved Milkweed on 5/7 in Warren County (AE).

Dave Larson led the NABA walk on 5/20 at Tyson which was co-sponsored with Friends of Tyson. The group found 1 Spicebush and 2 Tiger Swallowtails, 8 Eastern Tailed-Blues, 1 Summer Azure, 5 Pearl Crescents, 1 Banded Hairstreak, 1 Little Wood Satyr, 4 Monarchs, 2 Common Roadside Skippers, 2 Zabulon, and1 Sachem (DL, MER, LV).

A trip to Fults Hill Prairie on 5/23 yielded Swarthy Skipper,Tawny-edgedSkipper, Northern Cloudywing, Southern Cloudywing, and Great Spangled Fritillary (RG). On 5/26, 50+ Cabbage Whites, 2 Red-spotted Purples, 3 Hackberries, and 6 Silver-spotted Skippers were seen at Horseshoe Lake (JZ). On a visit to Cuivre River S.P. on 5/26, Dave berry found Giant, Tiger and Spicebush Swallowtails, Cabbage White, Pearl Crescent, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Summer Azure, Red-spotted Purple, E. Comma, Little Wood Satyr, Monarch, Silver-spotted Skipper, Hobomok Skipper, Little Glassywing, and 3 Hoary Edges. Two Hobomoks, 12 Summer Azures, Giant Swallowtail and Hackberries were flying at Busch Wildlife on 5/27 (JZ).

Six hearty members – Jim Ziebol (coordinator), Dave Berry, Dave Larson, Jeannie Moe, Mary-Eileen Rufkahr and Linda Virga – showed upon on a scorching Memorial Day Weekend for the Missouri Dept. of Conservation count on 5/28. They saw 19 species and 111 individuals, including Black, Giant, Tiger and Spicebush Swallowtails, Snout, Great Spangled Fritillary, Red-spotted Purple, Northern Pearly-eye and Northern Broken-Dash. A trip to Busch the following day, 5/29, produced another species not seen on the count: Gray Comma (JZ, YH). Sarah George observed Cabbage Whites, Summer Azures, and an anglewing at the Botanical Garden on 5/29.

Ron Goetz’s trip to Valley View Glade on 5/28 produced 22 species, including 18 Crossline Skippers, 5 Swarthy, 2 Tawny-edged, 4 Northern Broken-Dash, one Sachem (female), 1 Hoary Edge, and 1 Northern Cloudywing. Disappointingly, no Baltimore Checkerspots were seen. Valley View Glade is one of the few locations in the St. Louis area where this striking butterfly has been known to breed and late May is prime time for this species to be flying. Dennis Bozzay counted 3 Mourning Cloaks, 8 Great Spangled Fritillaries, 2 Buckeyes and 30 Hackberries at Busch Wildlife on 5/30. A Painted Lady was flying in Gentry Park in Bridgeton on 5/31 – very few have been seen so far this year (MER).

Dave Berry ended the month on a high note. On 5/31, while floating on the Current River in the Ozarks, he observed many butterflies, including a Southern Pearly-eye (not found in the immediate St. Louis vicinity),100+ Great Spangled Fritillaries, 100+ Silvery Checkerspots, Hayhurst’s Scallopwing, Little Yellow, Dainty Sulphur Mourning Cloak, Red Admiral, Zebra, Giant and Spicebush Swallowtails, Question Mark, E. Comma, Hackberry, Pearl Crescent, Red-spotted Purple, Eastern Tailed-Blue, Summer Azure, Horace’s Duskywing, and Hoary Edge.

Gardens: On 5/1, the Noes located a Monarch caterpillar in their yard and observed a female Monarch laying eggs. On 5/6, Yvonne found 8 Monarch caterpillars in her garden on Swamp Milkweed. On 5/24, Mary Eileen Rufkahr found 1Monarch, 4 Cabbage White, 1 ETB and 2 Summer Azures in her yard. Torrey Berger has seen Cabbage White, Spring Azure and Orange Sulphur in his garden (not many Orange Sulphurs have been reported from anywhere so far this year). Alana Studebaker’s garden in Oakley, IL (near Springfield) was full of activity in May: Black Swallowtail, Tiger Swallowtail, Cabbage White, Pearl Crescent, Mourning Cloak, Red Admiral, Question Mark, Eastern Comma, and Monarch. Alana found Black Swallowtail eggs on fennel and Monarch caterpillars on milkweeds. Cabbage Whites, Summer Azures, Great Spangled Fritillary, Monarch and Black Swallowtail have visited Sarah George’s garden. Karen Haller reported a Tiger Swallowtail on a deep pink Dianthus.

In late April, Belle Warden released 8 Black Swallowtails that overwintered in her house, and in May she found Black Swallowtail caterpillars in her garden in Madison, IL. Butterfly visitors in May included Pipevine and Spicebush Swallowtails, Cabbage White, a sulphur species, Summer Azure, Question Mark and Snout.

CONTRIBUTORS: Torrey Berger, Dave Berry, Dennis Bozzay, Ann Earley, Ron Goetz, Karen Haller, Jack Harris, Yvonne Homeyer, Tom “Terrific” Krauska, Dave Larson, Jeannie Moe, Mary Eileen Rufkahr, Jane Schaefer, Linda Virga, Belle Warden, Jim Ziebol. Bold indicates the first reported sighting of the year.

4. KID’S CORNER “YAHOOLIGANS” UPDATE by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr

NABA/St. Louis' Kids' Corner has recently been included on the Yahooligans Website! Yahooligans is considered by teachers and librarians to be one of the premier sites for students to use in searching the web. Many sites are submitted, but only a select few meet Yahooligans high standards which include a significant amount of original, worthwhile content and providing opportunities of fun and learning for children.

Yahoo (the "parent" website) explains the site as: "Yahooligans! is a browsable, searchable directory of Internet sites for kids. Each site has been carefully checked by an experienced educator to ensure the content and links are appropriate for kids aged 7-12. In addition to our directory, we also have a number of fun features, including Yahooligans! Games, Sports and News pages, Movies, Animals, Science and Dinosaurs, a Reference section, Parents' and Teachers' Guides, a Cool page, and lots more."

NABA/St. Louis' Kids' Corner is one of several thousand sites which are submitted yearly. . .only a few are selected to be included! Students from around the US and the world will have access to our site simply by typing in the key word "butterfly," "butterflies," and "NABA." Placement on the Yahooligans site is permanent; no site is removed unless content becomes inappropriate or outdated for children.

Check out Yahooligans for NABA/St. Louis (and lots of other cool sites too)!

Just type in (or click): http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/

For any comments or suggestions about the Kids' Corner, please contact Mary-Eileen Rufkahr at Merufkahr@aol.com. The Kid's Corner link is: http://www.naba.org/chapters/nabasl/kids.htm

5. BUTTERFLY WALKS AT TYSON AND BUSCH by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr

NABA/St. Louis - Friends of Tyson Walk:

On the cool, Saturday morning of May 20th, NABA/St. Louis members met at Washington University’s Tyson Research Center for their annual walk co-sponsored by the Friends of Tyson (FOT). Before the walk began, all met at the Tyson Gatehouse for a bit of socializing and nibbling on snacks provided by FOT. Members of both groups, led by NABA/St. Louis'Dave Larson, then set out optimistically hoping that temperatures would warm and many butterflies would be spotted. In addition to Dave, NABA members included Linda Virga, Tom O’Gorman and Mary-Eileen Rufkahr, along with several FOT members. While infrequent at first, soon the butterflies began emerging, delighting all those attending the walk. During the course of the morning, the following species were seen: Red-spotted Purple, Sachem, Zabulon Skipper, Common Roadside Skipper, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Spicebush Swallowtail, Banded Hairstreak, Eastern Tailed Blue, Azure, Pearl Crescent , Little Wood Satyr and Monarch.

At the conclusion of the morning, the group agreed that it was, as always, an enjoyable outing of socializing and butterflying.

NABA/St. Louis Count at Busch:

Sunday, May 28th was the kind of day butterfliers dream of: clear skies, sunny and warm (well, actually hot!). With promised high temps in the low 90's, NABA/St. Louis began the second count of the year at Busch Conservation Area.

Led by Jim Ziebol, the group included Dave Berry, Dave Larson, Jeannie Moe, Linda Virga and Mary Eileen Rufkahr.

Flowers in bloom were limited and the area was in great need of rainfall, but the butterflies were plentiful. The two and a half hour count yielded many great "finds," including: Black Swallowtail, Giant Swallowtail, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Spicebush Swallowtail, Cabbage White, Eastern Tailed-Blue, 'Summer' Spring Azure, American Snout, Great Spangled Fritillary, Question Mark, Eastern Comma, Red-spotted Purple, Hackberry Emperor, Northern Pearly-eye, Monarch, Silver-spotted Skipper, Least Skipper, Northern Broken-Dash and Little Glassywing.

We welcomed the breaks inside air-conditioned cars while traveling to the next site within Busch, but we were always glad to stop and see what butterflies were at each location.

6. GARDEN TOUR & SOCIAL EVENT ON JUNE 23 by Yvonne Homeyer

Anne McCormack has graciously invited NABA-St. Louis to tour her Kirkwood garden on Friday, June 23. The garden tour starts at 6:30 and you are welcome to arrive any time after that. Stroll through Anne’s garden to relax after your hectic schedule during the week, and get ideas for your own garden. Last year, Anne was one of the winners in the native plant category of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch garden contest. Anne will be on hand to identify plants and answer questions. The garden tour will be followed by Anne’s indoor video on native plants and gardening for butterflies and hummingbirds. Light refreshments (fruit, cheese, beverages) will be served, because we want to make this a social event, too. Even if it rains, we will have the indoor program and social hour. This will be a memorable event you don’t want to miss! For directions to Anne’s house at 587 Andrews Ave. in Kirkwood, see the end of the Calendar section in this newsletter.

7. NABA-ST. LOUIS MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION…

YOUR OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS, AS OF APRIL 2006: (AT = @ in Email address)

President Jim Ziebol

Vice President Yvonne Homeyer - homeyerATearthlink.net

Secretary Kathleen O'Keefe - nloeslATattg.net

Treasurer Dave Berry - currentriverATpeoplepc.com

Butterfly Gardening Dennis Bozzay - dbozzayATsbcglobal.net

Conservation Ann Earley - aee623ATprodigy.net

Education Mary-Eileen Rufkahr - merufkahrATaol.com

Membership Scott Marshall - scottmmarshllATcs.com

Newsletter Dave Larson - larsrblATearthlink.net

Public Relations Kate Boden - khbATaccessus.net

Walks & Counts Jim Ziebol

Web Master Dave Larson - larsrblATearthlink.net
View photo of board members