It was a promising start to a spring of wonderful butterflying down here in Klickitat County. And by March 14th we got word to shut down our programs and to think about staying indoors at home. As a teacher/spring season coach, and as the stories of the pandemic grew and grew, we were unable to travel. I fell into the high risk category due to age, diabetes, and a few other underlying conditions. This had never stopped me from roaming the hillsides and meadows in search of butterflies to observe.

On our daily walks in isolation, my son and I noticed the slow and steady unfolding of spring and the progression into summer. We noted the butterflies that we saw and sent the pertinent information to Jon Pelham. Since I could not really travel, we decided to work on sprucing up the place. As we added flowers and shrubs and kept them hydrated we noticed an in- crease in butterfly visitations. We got out the checklist from WBA field trips provid- ed by Dave Nunnallee and started keeping track of who came to visit our yard.

As of the first of September, we have had visits in my neighborhood from an incredible 32 species of butterflies. They varied from the dependable such as the Cabbage White and the Western Tiger Swallowtail to the rare and unusual Thicket Hairstreak and Indra Swallowtail. The thing that I found most fascinating were the species that I did not previously consider as nectar loving butterflies. But I observed Great Arctics (Oensis nevadensis), Indra Swallowtails (Papilio indra) and Lorquin’s Admirals (Limenitis lorquini) all spend time nectaring in my yard. I usually see these three common butterflies for the Klickitat River Valley out patrolling their territory rather than sipping sugar!

This spring and summer, I had visits from all of the five Swallowtails within a month’s time frame. The Indra and Anise flew until May at our lower elevation, and the Pale Tiger, Western Tiger, and the Two-Tailed Swallowtail all picked up from mid-June onward. The variety has been there from the Common Ringlet and Woodland Skippers to Acmon Blues and Lilac Bordered Coppers.

A quick list includes Silver Spotted Skippers, Propertius Skipper, Two Banded Checkered Skipper, Common Wood Nymph, Julia Orangetip, a lost Western Sulphur, Western Pine Elfin, California Hairstreak, a green hairstreak sp, Silvery Blue, Boisduval’s Blue, a raggedy old Zerene Fritillary, Northern (?) Checkerspot, Green Comma, California Tortoiseshell, Mourning Cloak, Painted Lady sp., Mylitta Crescent, Field Crescent, and a lone red Admiral.

Who knows what the list could have been if I netted all the little blues and skippers? I am still keeping an eye out for the arrival of the Mormon Metalmarks and other late season fliers this September-October.

Next year, regardless of travel restrictions or not, I will be keeping the camera handy and my checklist prominently at the ready. And an eye out for the Gold Hunters Hairstreak (Satyrium auretorem) which has been photographed nearby!!! All in all, it was a great year in isolation in my yard with the company of an ever-changing array of Lepidoptera.

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