Though I did not get a folded wing view with the double stripes, the golden-based color of the bluish/turquoise back identify this longtail as the Double-striped Longtail (butterfliesandmoths site) which seems to be rarely seen. This is my first sighting that I know of. If you browse my CR Butterflies Galleries you will see that there are several other “Longtail” Skippers besides this one and each is interesting. And like so many of the butterflies, there are several others that look a lot like this one, especially this time the Esmeralda Longtail, Urbanus esmeraldus.
English-language websites say dragonfly groups are either clusters, flights or swarms and swarm implies a lot more than the 6 to 8 I had circling my garden the other day, do I assume looking for food? 🙂 The term “flight” is appropriate with my group because they never landed anywhere in my yard but just kept flying around in circles like they were looking for something until they flew away from my yard.
Wandering Glider (Pantala flavescens), Atenas, Costa Rica
Now that I’m getting used to my Costa Rica Dragonfly/Damselfly book, I’m more comfortable identifying these guys as the Wandering Glider, Pantala flavescens (Wikipedia link), whose name indicates that they have the “habit of long-term flying and then hanging up vertically” in a tree or other plant. They did not “hang” at my place but moved on. Since all dragonflies breed in and generally stay around water, they are probably from the little stream on the other side of the cow pasture in front of my house. This species is known for its long flights, but evidently my yard was not far enough for what they wanted. 🙂
Another reason for this ID is that the book says they are “the only medium-sized skimmer gold or yellow-orange overall.” That plus the red eyes and reddish or gold spots on the tip of their wings clinches the ID. Two more photos:
I think this is a beautiful “Swallowtail-Like” butterfly that I’ve seen two other times before this; once before in my garden and once at Villa Calletas Hotel in Jaco Beach on the Pacific Coast. I know that at first glance, the spots above the crescents seem red rather than pink, but if you look at my top-view photo you can tell that they are more pink in some light. 🙂 Here’s four different photo views of one in my garden a week ago yesterday.
Yes, I could say that things are looking up as the number of Covid cases has greatly decreased, more people are out without a mask and businesses seem to be doing a little better, but this time I’m talking about literally looking up from my garden or terrace and seeing the beauty I miss when I only look down, like plants reaching for the sun, a beautiful leaf, and the flowers way up on the hill behind me! And I know that this is not the first post on “Looking Up” and probably won’t be the last, but it is with some fresh photos! 🙂
I’m seeing fewer grasshoppers now than just a few years ago, like with so many of the insects that are decreasing in numbers or going extinct, even in species-rich Costa Rica (11,000+ species of grasshoppers). I don’t have an identity on this little fellow of about an inch long, but the first grasshopper in my yard in a long time! I would encourage you to read a book I just started titled Rebugging the Planet: The Remarkable Things that Insects (and Other Invertebrates) Do – And Why We Need to Love Them More by Vicki Hird. As humans continue to cut down the forests and pour concrete and insecticides over the earth we are systematically destroying the natural earth including creatures necessary for our own survival. This little book is a great starting point for some people to begin “re-wilding” the earth! Time is running out! And I also recommend the documentary series INSECT PLANET on Curiosity Stream.
Unidentified Tiny Grasshopper, Atenas, Costa Rica.
A fairly common butterfly here, I think. You can read about them on butterfliesandmoths.org with scientific name of Ganyra josephina, they are found from South Texas through Central America and I’ve seen quite a few here this year, though not this many that would pause long enough for a photo. 🙂 See my other photos of this butterfly in my Giant White Gallery. Or to see my photos of several other species of Whites, go to the bigger Costa Rica Butterflies Gallery. And here’s 4 shots of a Giant White in my garden the other day. Sorry they are damaged but it has been pretty windy this year which may be why . . .
I believe this is probably the wettest rainy season in Atenas since I came 8 years ago and you can tell it by how green everything is and the strange places things like moss and ferns grow. Three photos . . .
Because I’m choosing IDs for a website now I am even more cautious or unsure of my identifications now and still don’t have an expert to run it by. But this seems to be the closest match out of around a dozen orange and brown Skipper butterflies in my book, A Swift Guide to Butterflies of Mexico and Central America, which I still depend on mostly. The website I’m volunteering for as Costa Rica Coordinator has so many different photos of this species that it makes it even more confusing, but as one of the most frequently cited species in this color I’m probably safe. 🙂 Size: about as big as my thumb.
Here’s my five totally different views of this orangey butterfly from two different days in my garden that I hope I have labeled correctly . . .
For reading my blog! One of my host services just informed me that last month, July, I had over 2,000 views, 89 comments and 157 “Likes” with only other WordPress Bloggers having a “Like” button. So thank you for paying attention to an old man’s ramblings while retired in the natural paradise of Costa Rica! ¡Pura Vida!
