Webster Butterflies!

I had just not been seeing any butterflies this summer which is unusual!  My neighbor's butterfly bush has been blooming for a couple of weeks and still none of the usual visitors.  The last day in July that all changed and I saw several varieties.  I have been seeing the common Eastern Tiger Swallowtail males and females pretty regularly now.  This was the best view of a nice non-bedraggled one who still had his swallowtail!  They love that butterfly bush!

This is the first Monarch I have seen.  Probably more will come by but I think last winter in this part of the country really hurt the populations.

This is a very bad very distant picture of a rapidly moving Spicebush Swallowtail.  I usually see these pretty frequently up here and certainly down in NC.  They are quite striking.  This one never stayed still for a moment and wasn't interested in the butterfly bush.

This is a Skipper although I am not sure which one -- probably Fiery but maybe not.  There were a couple of them on the bush.  They are only about 3/4 of an inch long and very fuzzy.  I think a lot of people mistake them for moths.

This is the underside of a Red Admiral.  A few years ago there was a surge in these in one very mild spring.  The following pic shows a little bit of his top side but he wasn't in to opening his wings for me!

The top side looks very different than the underneath -- bright orange with the white spots on the bottom.

Had to add in some pictures of our hibiscus.  This is one of the tropical ones that my dh takes back and forth to NC each year.

 These next two are also tropicals.

This is the first of the perennial hibiscus which are huge (tall and the flowers are the size of dinnerplates).  I like the cranberry colored ones best but they aren't out yet!