Rattlesnake Springs, a rare desert wooded riparian area that has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by the National Audubon Society, draws birders from around the world to see some of the 300-plus species that have been noted there.
But it provides so much more than bird habitat. Since it is one of our favorite places to explore, we'll be doing a number of posts on Rattlesnake Springs natural history topics. To start off, here's an incredible sighting from just yesterday. Neither one of us had ever seen so many individuals of a single species of butterfly in one small area as in this patch of milkweed (I believe Asclepias subverticillata):
The butterfly is a Queen (Danaus gilippus strigosus):
Truly, this sighting was humbling in so many ways....
More Rattlesnake Springs wonders soon!
that place is so magical, it just doesn't seem to fit in to the surrounding desert.
ReplyDeletelove the butterfly pic. you are so lucky to get to experience all this!
keep the natual adventure posts coming. i love them always! b
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