Just back from the dunes of Point Wilson here in Port Townsend, where on a bug/flower/whatever watching tour I noted a new to me butterfly. It was snooping about the blooming Grey - leaved Beach Pea ( Lathyrus littoralis). Sand Verbena is also blooming down there now.
Anyhoo, I got a real good close-up view of the critter with my super-dooper close focusing binocs, and made some field notes. Rushing back to the ranch (where I've recently been reunited with my butterfly books that I'd had back in Everett) , I was able to definitively ID the bug as a Lustrous Copper - all the little details matched the photo in Mister Pyle's excellent butterfly bible to a T.
Alas, the Lustrous Copper is a life form that aint supposed to be around here. Yet, at least based on the photo in the book, that's what I saw. While not much of a butterflier, I have been watching them for years and am familiar with the general categories of those bugs.
So my question is - has anyone else seen a Lustrous Copper out of range, or is there something else I could have confused it with around here? Like I said, the size (about an inch wingspan) and all the details match the photo in Pyle, page 172! Any comments would be appreciated.
Jeff Gibsonbugging you fromPort Townsend Wa