It’s the last week of July (already) and the Asters are beginning to bloom. Although you might not see the iconic New England Aster for a few more weeks, you can start thinking about what butterflies and caterpillars you might see when it is out.
Which of the species below uses the New England Aster as a host plant?
See below for the answer to this weeks’ quiz!
The species on top, one of the Crescents, hosts on Aster species. The species on the bottom, the Milbert’s Tortoiseshell hosts on Nettles.
While the Northern and Pearl Crescent adults can’t be ID’d in the field, that doesn’t stop you from searching for their eggs and caterpillars on the various fall-blooming Asters of Vermont. They can have several flights a year while they are out from May to October. Look on the underside of Aster leaves for small groupings of small pale green-white eggs. With over 25 species of Aster in Vermont, there are plenty of places to look! Like many other caterpillars, the spiky early instars live in social groups before stringing out on their own as they get older.
The Milbert’s Tortoiseshell can be seen on the wing from early March until the end of November. They lay two broods a year with up to 900 individuals each. You can find the pale green eggs blending into the underside of nettle leaves or the spiky early caterpillars feeding together in a clustered web. There are two species of native nettles in Vermont - Slender Stinging Nettle (more common) and European Stinging Nettle as well as another host plant, Canada Clearweed.
Photos
New England Aster by Kent McFarland (iNaturalist)
Crescent sp. By Bruce Cook (iNaturalist)
Milbert’s Tortoiseshell by Kent McFarland (iNaturalist)
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