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Posted by Rock Jetty on 00:34:25 04/13/06
In Reply to: Photos of White Rump Sandpipers in flight... poor photos posted by Trey Mitchell
Trey, starting from the bottom:
Many species of skipper have three spots on the forewing. I don't think this is a Three-spotted Skipper because the antennae don't seem long enough. Other than that, I hope someone else can chip in.
The next two are of the beautiful Bella Moth.
Next is the Checkered White, male.
And then there's the puzzling one, fifth from the bottom. It looks a little like a Southern Skipperling, but it also doesn't. Your previous photo of the species showed a male (black stigma on the wing apparent) with the whitish fringe on the wings and the right orange colors and markings. This one is also a male that not only lacks the whitish fringe (okay, no big deal), but also sports a more yellowish color and way less brown markings. The underside of the hindwings of Southern Skipperlings have a white band going across, but this ID clinching field mark is not visible in the photo. Someone else feel free to chip in.
As far as the White-rumped Sandpipers go...hard to tell. Mid-April is early but it's when they start arriving (according to the books). May 4th is the earliest I've seen them, however, the good folks on the Gulf side may have earlier dates for them.
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