Fluttering by
Appreciating the graceful beauty of summer butterflies
When Maryann Nazarchyk was working at a garden center in Old Lyme, she remembers a man strolling through and mumbling about a rare butterfly that was fluttering among the plants for sale. When she saw the insect herself, she became intrigued and wanted to learn more about it. It wasn’t long before she was hooked.
“At first I thought, ‘ Who cares about butterflies?’” she said. “But then I started noticing them. They’re beautiful, and there’s something fascinating about them. You just want to learn more and more.”
Today the Niantic resident organizes field trips for the Connecticut Butterfly Association and is instrumental in guiding newcomers to a greater awareness and appreciation of Connecticut’s 121 species of butterflies.
“The more you learn about them — about their life cycle and habitat and host plants — you realize how complex they are,” Nazarchyk said. “They’re more than just beautiful insects.”
Butterflies are indeed complex. Most adults have short lifespans of just a few weeks, during which they
drink nectar from flowers and mate. Shortly before dying, females lay their eggs on plants specific to each butterfly species. When the eggs hatch, the tiny caterpillars feed on their host plant, and after several weeks they go through their famed metamorphosis, transforming into an attractive and colorful winged insect.
Since adult butterflies will only lay their eggs on one or two types of plants — milkweed for monarchs, parsley and fennel for black swallowtails, and stinging nettles for red admirals, for instance — it’s vital that habitat for those plants be available to ensure the future health of the butterflies.
In early June at Harkness Memorial State Park in Waterford — one of the best places to see butterflies in southeastern Connecticut — Nazarchyk strolled through garden after garden, along hedgerows and weedy fields, and around historic buildings where butterflies with names like American copper, eastern tailed blue and pearl crescent are common early in the season. Although butterflies were scarce that day, they are typically abundant in late summer when many wild and cultivated flowers are in bloom.
Author John Himmelman of Killingworth, one of the founders and the current president of the Connecticut Butterfly Association, has been interested in butterflies since childhood, when he used to chase them with a net in suburbia.
“Part of my interest is the aesthetics of them. It’s a cliché to call them flying flowers, but that’s really what they are,” he said. “But there’s also the whole treasure hunt aspect of it. It’s fun to see what you can find.”
He recommends visiting the Salem Land Trust’s Walden Preserve to search for butterflies, Bent-of-theRiver Audubon Center in Southbury, or Bower Park in Madison. “They’ve all got great fields and wildflowers that attract butterflies, especially in July and August,” Himmelman said. “I lead a field trip to Bent-of-theRiver every year.”
It’s also not necessary to go beyond one’s own backyard or neighborhood to see butterflies, especially when gardens are in bloom and the right host plants are growing.
“I live right in town, so my garden is small,” said Nazarchyk. “But you don’t need a lot of space; just some sunshine and some good host plants and nectar plants. Butterflies are less specific about what plants they get nectar from — zinnias are good, Brazilian verbena, marigolds for skippers, mint for hairstreaks.
“You can also go to almost any garden center where there are a lot of plants,” she added. “You’ll see butterflies flying all around there. When I go to garden centers, I notice the butterflies more than the plants.”
Community pollinator gardens, like the one at Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, are also excellent places to see butterflies. “Anything that attracts bees will bring in the butterflies,” Nazarchyk said.
The experts note that the best time to look for butterflies is on a sunny day in mid- to-late summer when the humidity is high. Bring along binoculars or a good camera, as well as a field guide to help identify which varieties you are seeing. Himmelman and Nazarchyk recommend Butterflies through Binoculars by Jeffrey Glassberg.
“You don’t need a net; most people don’t do that anymore,” Nazarchyk said. “Just take your time and notice things. The big ones will be obvious, but the little ones are especially fascinating.”
Most of the little ones are in a group called skippers, about 40 species that are mostly dressed in browns and orange and are especially difficult to identify.
“Those are my favorites,” said Himmelman. “They’re the sparrows of the butterfly world. They have the colors of the earth and fly close to the earth like sparrows. They’re a challenge, but that’s what I like about them.”
Himmelman said that those interested in learning more about butterflies should join one of the Connecticut Butterfly Association’s many field trips to sites around the region.
“We’ve got something for everybody,” he said. “We collect data and compile sightings throughout the year to see trends in butterfly populations, and we’ve got programs for those who just want to go out and see pretty butterflies.”
“Butterflying is fun, it’s educational, and kids love it,” concluded Nazarchyk. “And you feel like you’re doing something positive in the world.”
For more information on the Connecticut Butterfly Association and its field trips, visit www. ctbutterfly. org.