Community Corner
Butterflies Fluttering By: Red Admirals "Irrupting'' All Over The Place
Warm winter responsible for increased number of hatchlings this year
If you think you're seeing more butterfilies than usual for this time of year, you're right.
Experts say a great number of Red Admiral butterflies -- which at first glance look like their more well-known cousins, the Monarch butterfly -- are having a birthday party.
Todd Klein, a volunteer at the Cape May Bird Observatory, said this is around the time that Red Admirals are hatching. There is some migration taking place, too, Klein said.
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"But what you're likely seeing are the hatchlings from last year,'' he said. "It has just gotten warm enough that the eggs are hatching.''
The observatory tracks the movement of Monarch butterflies over time. Klein said often the Red Admiral gets confused with the Monarch because the two are similarly colored.
The sudden influx of the butterflies is called an "irruption" -- a natural, cyclical population boom that causes an increase of butterflies every few years. And the unusually warm winter we had this year helped them to thrive, experts say. A boom of this size has not been seen in 12 years, according to butterfly watchers.
If you're overrun lately like so many seem to be, don't forget to send in those pictures!
