They taunt me.

Every spring, I have these small, white butterflies bobbing through my yard. Sometimes I can see they have orange on the tips of their wings, and sometimes they seem quite plain.  I get excited, regardless. These early spring visitors are falcate orangetip (Anthocharis midea) butterflies, and they are very elusive. I swear they never land, although they drink nectar, so they have to stop flying sometime.

A typical encounter runs like this: I’m busy doing something outside when I see a small white blob fluttering along the edge of the woods. (OMG! There it is!) I dash inside to get my camera, and by the time I get back, the small blob has moved, but is still flitting, tantalizingly, around some open area of my yard. As stealthily as I can, I try to move closer, but the butterfly obviously sees me and merrily skips away. (No, no, no, no, no!) I follow, hoping it will finally land somewhere. (Land, you stupid butterfly! Land!) But no, it just keeps flying away until it decides to go back into the woods. I’m unwilling to follow it there because of ticks and poison ivy and greenbriar and all the other deterrents that make traipsing through the woods an often unpleasant experience. Sometimes, it will land, way back in the jungle, where I can still barely see it, almost as if it’s taunting me. (Stupid, stupid butterfly.)

Until today…

Today was different. For one, I had my camera out in the yard with me when a male butterfly came bobbing through. And he landed on a dandelion. (No way. No way this is actually happening.) Moving slowly, I tried to get closer. Up he flew (I knew it!), and he bobbed around in circles… then landed again right in front of me. In camera range. (You beautiful, beautiful butterfly!) And so I was able to get my first photos of a male falcate orangetip. I know it’s a male because he has gold/orange wing tips. The female looks similar, but without the gold/orange. I was still pretty far away, so they aren’t my best photos, but I hope they’re good enough for you to appreciate this uncommon beauty.

A bit about falcate orangetips

Falcate orangetips fly during early spring, March to May in southern Texas, and April to May in Oklahoma and states to the east. Their range includes much of the eastern part of the U.S. They nectar early spring flowers such as violets, mustards, and, apparently, dandelions. Their larval foodplants include mustards, bitter cress, and rock cress. Their habitat includes woods beside streams and rivers, as well as open swamps. I’m in a perfect place to see them, with thick woods and a wet draw at the back of my property.

Other spring reminders

Our spring migrants are already returning from the south. Today I saw monarch butterflies and my first ruby-throated hummingbird. Yesterday, I saw a scissor-tailed flycatcher, a magnificent bird that has a limited range including Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. They are going to have a hard time of it, because at my location we’re expecting three nights with freezing temperatures after a week of warm weather. So, it’s a good time to put out your hummingbird feeders and ensure your other bird feeders are full, as well. In places north where spring hasn’t taken hold, it may not be too late to put up new bird houses and nesting boxes. You can also put out nesting materials. Spring caught me off guard this year (my attention has been on COVID-19 and rearranging my life to self-isolate), and my birds are already raising young.

And if you’re out and about and happen to see a small, white shape bobbing at the edge of your woods, go check it out. Maybe it’s the elusive falcate orangetip.