Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Share your notes and experiences in the field
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

02 July 2022

I find myself standing on Burns Road in Ithaca, 39 years to the day that Robert Hagen and Robert Lederhouse (Polymodal emergence of the tiger swallowtail, 1985) did. What brought me here was a cryptic, and seemingly causual, response by @eurytides to a question concerning canadensis and glaucus flight periods: "it's not a simply dichotomy." What do you mean? Of course it is. Right?

And thus I was made aware of the existence of the Mid Summer Tiger Swallowtail (MST). Called "late flight" by Hagen & Lederhouse, "recombinant hybrid" by Scriber, and going by other monikers by other authors, MST was fairly well studied in Ontario Canada. And, aside from the nod from Hagen & Lederhouse, examination of iNaturalist photos from New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Vermont indicate the presence of an appalachiensis-like Tiger that flies long after canadensis, and between the glaucus spring and summer emergences.

Despite H&L having clearly identified Burns Rd, Ithaca as a favored location, I saw but one Tiger, flying as they often do- high and fast. Burns Road was a failure, though I'm sure it's changed in 29 years since the last Tiger count.

But a little searching paid off. By mid-afternoon I'd secured three pairs of this "Ithaca" MST, all feeding on milkweed.

Moving on, I drove through Taughannock State Park- nothing. Up through Trumansburg, at which last year photos of MST had been posted. Nothing. 120km north, with zero Tigers observed. At the end of the line, at Sodus Point on the south shore of Lake Ontario (which, incidentally has Canada on the other side) my wife and daughter were quickly dismayed as the ABS kicked on and the truck slid sideways to a halt as I exited the vehicle. I didn't get that specimen, but the last hour of afternoon yielded 10+ sightings and one very fortunate capture- a fresh male MST. So they DO exist in Sodus Point.

I should note that while the Ithaca MST were all on milkweed, ZERO in Sodus Point were seen to be nectaring on milkweed or anything else. And, despite having seen some Tigers last week in Ontario County, none of those were nectaring on milkweed or anything else. I have no idea why the Ithaca MST would be drawn to milkweed, yet the two other locations are not.

In any event, @eurytides is looking over new MtDNA I've not had time to review. Some very odd things buried in the data. But today is rain, and rain means a day off from field work, so I'm off to open a month-old stack of mail.
eurytides
Meek
Meek
Reactions:
Posts: 196
Joined: Tue May 24, 2022 1:36 am
Canada

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by eurytides »

You are awesome Chuck. Keep up the good work. Tiger swallowtails are having a terrible season here in Kingston.
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

Quick one while I wash week old field clothes before heading out again. MST confirmed in NY Ontario County as well, albeit more variable than Ithaca and only one female.
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

Update for those who are interested.

I've set the specimens from my "Late Flight"/ MST research, though have two on the board from last week, Ontario County.

The "Ithaca" specimens are much larger than the others.

Last week in Ontario County I expected to see no Tigers, assuming it to be between the MST and summer-form glaucus flights. However, I secured three specimens, two which look MST and one toward glaucus. I know from experience that in Ontario County the summer form will explode in population any day now. I suspect that the Ithaca population is distinct because it doesn't interbreed with summer glaucus whereas the Ontario County MST does.

I observed Tigers over the weekend in Wayne County, but was unable to secure a specimen. I'd expect that local summer form population to eclose soon as well, suggesting that the MST/ summer form flight periods overlap there as well.

For the past two weeks the Ontario County Tigers were nectaring on milkweed, but as of late last week that was pretty much past peak, so they'd moved to Turtlehead. I still have yet to discover what the Wayne Co Tigers nectar on

A quick jaunt to central KY revealed Tigers flying, but none alighting, so no specimens. Past experience indicates that mid-August is just past peak in central KY at which time they're on thistle and tall Ironweed. However, last week almost nothing was yet flowering- not milkweed, not thistle, not ironweed. Yet they're already harvesting corn in KY whereas in NY we're still a month away. When targeting a particular species group, I've become very attuned to the nectaring plants, and observations like this leave me with more questions than answers.

I do feel horrible to have to focus on Tigers and ignore some other fabulous butterflies, such as the Fritillaries. However, each distraction can be a lost opportunity.

@Eurytides picked up on some shocking data points in the MtDNA, so I'm setting aside specimens for the geneticists and they need local summer form specimens as well.


Once the two Ontario Co Tigers are off the board I'll try to post a photo. Though I'm back out to the field again this week, my gosh it's going to be hot and steamy, like Bangkok. My legs are covered with pin-hole scabs from the thorns; last week I pull a big thorn out of my back side that had been buried for a month and it bled for hours. Why is it I do this?
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

Caught this female today. Not quite up to "fletcheri" standards, but not typical either.

Image
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

I believe it sufficient to say that the flight of the Mid Summer Tiger is over. When it started, and when it completed, is not completely clear; unlike observations by Hagen & Lederhouse, and the Canadian researchers, in the Finger Lakes region of NY there was no discrete start and end of any flights: I've seen Tigers (of some sort) every week since 14 May.

The attached is what I believe to be MST. What's flying now looks similar, though with more glaucus-type features.

Image
User avatar
adamcotton
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 743
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 12:24 pm
Location: Thailand
Thailand

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by adamcotton »

Chuck,

Can you summarise the morphological differences in wing pattern between MST and glaucus. I suspect that many new members will not have seen the thread in the old forum.

Adam.
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

To recap, Mid Summer Tiger is an unknown entity. It's an obligate dipauser and univoltine. It, like appalachiensis, has morphological (and other) traits of both glaucus and canadensis. This page has a great summary with maps (Ontario Canada) and images of morphological differences. https://www.ontarioinsects.org/tigers.html

ETA: one thing that link doesn't show is the verso HW submarginal yellow spots. In canadensis they are rectangular, in glaucus they are crescent shaped; in MST they tend toward a mix, curved but blocky.

It's a bit easier in Ontario, where MST flight slots between canadensis and glaucus (or in the east, only after canadensis). South of there, which is Finger Lakes, it gets confusing. Ithaca MST and some "mountainous" areas are more consistent with the archetypical MST; in my county they look like a MST-glaucus mix; or one could say canadensis-glaucus mix; or even a perpetual spring form of glaucus.
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

Oh, there's a better guide to ID of MST from our own @eurytides https://www.ontarioinsects.org/publicat ... tigers.pdf This best shows the verso morphology, as well as the differences in larvae.
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

After 108 days (not all afield) I'm hanging it up for the year. I saw two Tigers today, but it's pretty clear we're near the end, and I can't imagine there is some mysterious super-late flight that pops up.

Now that I have a decent series of Tigers from Finger Lakes spanning mid-May through late August, I want to try to spot morphological trends over time. Meaning, I have to re-collate. What's the best way to organize- as we read in English, left to right, then top to bottom? Or top to bottom starting at left? A running image strip on a single line would probably be best, but that's a winter project.

Any ideas?
User avatar
Trehopr1
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 982
Joined: Thu Mar 31, 2022 1:48 am
United States of America

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Trehopr1 »

It seems like a personal choice Chuck but, I've noticed most European collectors start their drawers from the bottom and add to their series (going up toward the top); of course left to right.

However, we Americans start our drawers from the top and work our way down (in series). This is the way I've seen it done here in every collection I've ever seen.

So, I say start ( top to bottom) and (left to right) as it seems to be the standard here (where you live).
Chuck
Premium Member - 2024
Premium Member - 2024
Reactions:
Posts: 885
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 2:30 pm
Solomon Islands

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Chuck »

Thanks Hopr. But this is more than just display. There will be a number of eyes on this, looking for morphological series/trends and I want to make it as easy as possible to pick out any time-related characteristics. I assume most of the people looking at this initially will be in US and Canada.

Your point on American methods is taken. American eyes start upper left. Most people would scan the top row, then the next; however maybe Lep people are just as? more? comfortable going down the row.
User avatar
adamcotton
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 743
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 12:24 pm
Location: Thailand
Thailand

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by adamcotton »

I organise specimens in my drawers in columns from left to right but I put the lowest specimen in each column at the bottom of the drawer,
for example:
Image

The reason is that you only need to pull the drawer out as far as the top specimen.

In your case I think you want to organise the specimens by date. When I do that I put the first specimen in the top left and then the next below it to the bottom of the left hand column, then the next oldest at the top of the 2nd column and so on.

Adam.
User avatar
adamcotton
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 743
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 12:24 pm
Location: Thailand
Thailand

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by adamcotton »

By the way, Norbert Kondla recorded canadensis at Baril Creek, Rocky Mountains of southwestern Alberta on 1st August.

I thought it was univoltine. Did you ever find a second generation canadensis in Finger Lakes, or elsewhere nearby?

Adam.
User avatar
adamcotton
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 743
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 12:24 pm
Location: Thailand
Thailand

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by adamcotton »

Maybe canadensis is bivoltine in the west, or alternatively could the hot weather earlier in the year have prevented diapause from being triggered in one or more larvae?

Adam.
eurytides
Meek
Meek
Reactions:
Posts: 196
Joined: Tue May 24, 2022 1:36 am
Canada

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by eurytides »

As far as I know, canadensis is univoltine everywhere. The August specimen Norbert has (I have not seen it, do you have a picture?) is definitely an oddball.
User avatar
Paul K
Meek
Meek
Reactions:
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 6:44 pm
Canada

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by Paul K »

P.canadensis starts to fly in Rocky Mountains in Alberta in In May with a pick season in June and In July is slowly ending. I’ve seen worn specimens in mid July. It is possible that some emerged in late July if the spring was late in that region.
eurytides
Meek
Meek
Reactions:
Posts: 196
Joined: Tue May 24, 2022 1:36 am
Canada

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by eurytides »

Adam, there are also snow covered mountains in Alberta, so there can also be later emergences depending on elevation.
User avatar
bobw
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 170
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 2:53 pm
Location: England
Great Britain

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by bobw »

Trehopr1 wrote: Mon Aug 29, 2022 5:48 pm It seems like a personal choice Chuck but, I've noticed most European collectors start their drawers from the bottom and add to their series (going up toward the top); of course left to right.
I think that's pretty unusual, I've only seen one or two collections organised like that. Most people in Europe, like you, start at top left then work down column by column.
User avatar
adamcotton
Global Moderators
Global Moderators
Reactions:
Posts: 743
Joined: Tue Mar 22, 2022 12:24 pm
Location: Thailand
Thailand

Re: Tiger Swallowtails of NY: Finger Lakes, Part II

Post by adamcotton »

eurytides wrote: Mon Aug 29, 2022 10:00 pm As far as I know, canadensis is univoltine everywhere. The August specimen Norbert has (I have not seen it, do you have a picture?) is definitely an oddball.
No, Norbert only listed it as "Seen but not collected and not photographed" in his report on TILS e-mail group.

I thought I was correct remembering that canadensis was univoltine everywhere. Norbert did say earlier in the year that everything was late this past 'spring'.

Adam.
Post Reply

Create an account or sign in to join the discussion

You need to be a member in order to post a reply

Create an account

Not a member? register to join our community
Members can start their own topics & subscribe to topics
It’s free and only takes a minute

Register

Sign in