What a beautiful picture, Angie! I am in NE Georgia and after a pretty busy spring, it has been so slow for the last few months. I am hoping things will begin picking up. I have plenty of milkweed, rue, parsley, passion vine, etc. All the host plants are ready and waiting for some company!

Gosh I love Buckeyes. Beautiful shot! I've seen one this year, didn't have my camera in my hand though. I've seen 2 black somethings. I'm pretty sure one is a Black Swallowtail, but I'm not sure what the other was. It was large, but I didn't get a very good look at it before it flew off when my dog barked.

I spotted this yesterday...

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While doing my daily chores I spotted a zebra swallowtail and a palamedes swallowtail. I have noticed an upswing in butterfly activity lately as well. I hope one of my fellow Texans is accurate in predicting an early fall. Fall has been my favorite season for the majority of my adult life, but last winter, in accordance with some of my Astrological influences, late winter seemed destined to become one of my favorite times of the year, as I mature.

Beautiful pictures, and congrats on seeing the butterflies Angie!
Sherry

Nice Angie! I am glad to see something on marigolds. I want to try experimenting with a few.
-Elisabeth

Thanks y'all. As I type, I see a huge Tiger out on my Zinnias in the back yard! I also spotted some Sleepy Orange cats on my Sicklepod Senna today. Guess I will bring some of them into a tent. Hate to see the wasps get them all. Butterfly season is cranking up now. I wish we'd get some rain. Gosh, it has been sooooo hot and dry here. I have a huge Marigold bed, and I never see anything but Skippers on the flowers. I was surprised to see the Buckeye there.~~Angie

I had a Buckeye nectaring on Basil flowers a week or so ago. I've seen other butterflies on my basil before - usually hairstreaks - it was a first for me to see a Buckeye on it.

By the way I think they are so beautifully unusual. I just love to look at Buckeyes/photos of them.

~Laura

Nice pics! I hope the buckeyes come back here!

Pretty butterfly! I don't think I've seen a Buckeye here - what host plants do they use?

I bought a pot of Marigolds from the Ace hardware. They are pretty yellow orange with red stripes. Planted them around the edge of the veggie garden. Quite decorative with semi-double flowers, but they do have nectar tubes. I've been pleasantly surprised to see a Sulfur, Monarch, and Tiger Swallowtail nectaring on them so far!

Host plants for the Buckeyes:

Buckeye
- Snapdragon family, scrophulariaceae
- Plantain family, plantaginaceae
- Vervain family, verbenaceae
1. Agalinis fasciculata - wild foxglove
2. Dyschoriste spp. - twinflower
3. Ruellia caroliniana - wild petunia
4. Ruellia succulenta - thickleaf wild petunia
5. Verbena hastata - blue vervain
6. Orthocarpus spp. - owl's clover
7. Plantago lanceolata - English plantain/ribgrass
8. Mimulus - monkey flower
9. Linaria vulgaris - butter & eggs

10. Linaria canadensis - blue toadflax
11. Linaria purpurea - purple toadflax
12. Galvezia speciosa - Island bush snapdragon
13. Diascia spp. - twinspur
14. Plantago major - greater or common plantain

Buckeye on Basil

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