American snout, photo’d by Pat Sutton, Cape May NWR, 3/7/12.
…. correct.
Do you like to pencil little notes in the margins of your butterfly books — “Really?” or “True?” or “How can that be??”– when you come upon some piece of information that seems not to make sense?
If so, you may want to open your books to their entries about American snout and have an eraser in hand. The claims in Gochfeld & Burger and Cech & Tudor that American snout, a species most of us see only between late spring and early fall, could overwinter as an adult in New Jersey seem hard to believe. Thanks to alert observers in Cape May County, however, and the warm weather, we have fresh evidence that those statements are the truth.
The first report to our log of a snout in 2012 came on February 1(!) from Jim Dowdell at Cape Island Creek Preserve. Will Kerling had two subsequent February reports: Feb 17 and Feb 22, both on Beaver Dam Road.
Pat & Clay Sutton found and photo’d the species on the Woodcock Trail at Cape May NWR on March 7th, and on March 8, three different observers (Cynthia Allen, Will Kerling, and Jim Dowdell) at three different sites (Lizard Tail Swamp, Beaver Dam Road, and Port Norris) totaled 17 snouts. Will and Cynthia noted several individuals in courtship flight and Will photo’d the mating pair below.
photo by Will Kerling, paired snouts, Beaver Dam Road, Cape May County, 3/8/12.
photo by Will Kerling, same individuals as above.