Greetings Fellow Lepidoptera Enthusiasts! It’s a wrap. Another season of watching our winged wonders here in the Pacific Northwest. And how would we describe it? The terms -different, -unusual and -weird all come to mind. 2022 were all of these and more. We had a great start followed by an April freeze out, followed by a wet June, followed by a dry summer and followed by a mild but dry October.

As unusual as it was this year, perhaps we need to be aware that this may be the new normal. The cause of the weather shift can be debated at length, but it seems pretty undeniable that it is here. As the weather goes, so go the butterflies.

Some species have become rarer than normal, some seem to have gone into hiding only to emerge at different times than expected, and yet others have burst onto the scene.

The Western Pygmy Blue is no different. Since Bob Pyle first reported it in 2004, there have been very few instances where it has reappeared until this year. The Tri-Cities area has seen a remarkable influx this year, a real treat for those of us in the far north of the country. Thank you to David James for monitoring its presence and showing us where they can be found flittering about on Russian Thistle/ tumbleweed.

Next year there will be many people anxious to check if it will make a reappearance (as will I) or not. I would urge us all to get out next spring and check our old haunts as well to see what is actually flying in 2023 instead of just assuming that our good old standbys will be there. Hopefully they will but confirmation is a very good thing. And perhaps they will have some new species keeping them company. It is only by looking that we will know. Get those binoculars, cameras, and nets ready!!

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