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Here you will find some history and background on the author of Butterflies of Oregon. A Bit More History Continued from "About" page... I had long paid attention to butterflies, ever since my childhood days of collecting butterflies with my Dad. When I was about 10 years old, Dad drove our family up the Steens Mountain Loop Road, and we stopped near the summit, at over 9,000 feet elevation. In the windswept, grassy meadows near the summit, there were hundreds of Milbert's Tortoiseshells flying up in the wind. I was captivated! That year, Dad bought me a butterfly net, a Golden Guide field identification guide, a killing jar, a pinning board, and a display case. The next summer, we spent several weekends driving and walking Forest Service Roads near Portland looking for butterflies with our nets in hand. Decades later, in 2001, my friend Eric Wold told me of his childhood love of butterflies, and we decided to go on a hike to Iron Mountain in Linn County to find some butterflies. On that hike I unsuccessfully attempted to photograph a bright green Sheridan's Hairstreak, and I got hooked! That first failure started me on a long and joyful journey of photographing butterflies. It was about 2014 when I realized that I had photographed around 100 species of native butterflies in Oregon. I thought to myself "I might actually be able to photograph all of them," meaning all of Oregon's regularly occurring 168 species (the exact number depends on whose taxonomic approach you follow, and how many species have been recently split or lumped). I decided that year to go to work on those remaining 68 or so species, just for fun, and to see what kind of progress I could make. In 2014 - 2017, I had a great time tromping around the wild spots in Oregon, and added several more species. In 2017, I posted a couple of butterfly photos to Facebook, and admitted to the world that I was going to try for all of Oregon's regularly breeding species. Seeing that post, my friend Lindsay Selzer inquired about where she could see all the ones I had already photographed. I sheepishly wrote her that I had never bothered to compile the collection and I actually wasn't even sure how many I had. Her question inspired me to find out the answer, which led me down the path toward creating this website to share these photos. Through that effort I realized that, of Oregon's regularly occurring and breeding species, at that time I only had about 15 more to photograph! I hadn't realized I was so close! Knowing I was so close lit a fire under me, and I began to get organized. See my blog for accounts of my most recent escapades, adventures and discoveries. Thanks for reading, and for your interest in the Butterflies of Oregon! Neil Bjorklund Eugene, Oregon

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Hedgerow Hairstreak butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Crooked Cr, Lake Co, August 6 - female Hedgerow Hairstreak Satyrium saepium Size: 1.0 - 1.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Coppery-brown above. Gray-brown below (darker when very fresh) with broken median line, and vague submarginal band of black chevrons on HW. Relatively short tails, with blue frosted patch just below. Similar species: Somewhat similar to Mtn Mahogany HS, which is more gray or gray-frosted over brown below. Gold-Hunter's HS has a less clear and less defined median line on HW below, and has a very restricted range. Host plant: Ceanothus species, including C. cuneatus (Buckbrush), C. velutinus (Snowbrush) and C. integerrimus (Deerbrush) . Habitat: Shrubby hillsides and canyons, oak scrub, chaparral where host plants grow. Range: NE Oregon, SW Oregon, Cascade Range. Season: Mid-May to late September Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Oregon Swallowtail butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Lower Deschutes Canyon, Sherman Co, June 25 Thank you to Dana Ross and Paul Hammond , volunteers at OSAC! Oregon Swallowtail Papilio machaon oregonia Size: 2.75 - 3.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Upperside yellow with black bands, veins, and patches, long single tails, blue chevrons on black band near hindwing margin. On HW above, black "pupil" on red eyespot is at the edge of the red, not centered. Abdomen is yellow on sides with relatively narrow black bands on top and bottom. Below, similar pattern as above, with paler yellow ground color, with reddish-orange halos on some of the HW blue chevrons. Similar species: Anise Swallowtail somewhat smaller, black pupil on HW red eyespots is centered within the red, abdomen is mostly black, with narrow yellow bands on sides. Host plant: Wild tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus ). Habitat: Canyons, hillsides, where host plant is found, and on cliffs, ridges, plateaus and mountains above. Range: Throughout Deschutes, Columbia and Snake River basins. Season: Mid-March to mid-October Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Acmon Blue butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Gert Canyon, Wasco Co, May 4 - male Acmon Blue Icaricia acmon Size: 0.8 - 1.0 inch wingspan Key ID features: Male blue above with narrow black marginal band and white fringe, on HW orange band above marginal row of black spots. Female brown above with darker marginal line and white fringe, on HW broad orange band above row of dark brown marginal spots. Below, light bluish gray with black spots, on HW row of marginal spots that are black inwardly, then orange, and outwardly black with a center circle of iridescent blue. Similar species: Lupine Blue very similar, but tends to be larger, and on males, tends to have a dark border between red-orange band and blue on HW above (Acmon usually has pinkish-orange band transitioning directly to blue). Host plant: Several Buckwheat (Eriogonum ) species and many pea family species including Lotus, Melilotus, and Lupinus . Habitat: Wide range of habitats, from sea level lowlands to montane habitats. Range: Found in all of Oregon except the far NW corner. Season: Early April to early October Abundance: Widespread and common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Mormon Fritillary butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Summit Meadows, Lane Co, August 13 Mormon Fritillary Argynnis mormonia AKA Speyeria mormonia Size: Up to 2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Small for a greater fritillary. Male bright orange above with fine black veins, black irregular markings inwardly, submarginal black spot band and black arrows that point inward. Female darker orange above with all black markings bolder. Below ground color of "disc" on HW light orange-tan with large oblong silvery-white spots with brown to dark maroon shadows. Similar species: Hesperis is larger and has reddish brown disc below. Hydaspe is larger and has dark red to maroon disc below. Hostplant: Violet (Viola ) species . Habitat: Openings, riparian areas and meadows in coniferous forests above 3,500 feet. Range: Found on east slope of Cascades, and in Warner Mtns, Steens Mtn, Ochocos, Wallowa Mtns and Blue Mtns. Season: Early June to mid-October. Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for Mylitta Crescent butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Hills Creek Rd, Lane Co, Aug 27, male Mylitta Crescent Phyciodes mylitta Size: Up to 1.5 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above, orange with black spots, checks and borders. Females have wider black border above. Fringes checked. HW above with submarginal band of small black dots circled with orange, on males this is below large unmarked orange patch. HW below cream, tan and brown bands and patches, and bright marginal crescent below midpoint, haloed with brown. Similar species: Pale Crescent is larger than Field or Mylitta. Mylitta lacks nearly rectangular black bar at trailing edge of FW above. Host plant: Mostly thistles, including Cirsium arvense (Canada thistle) . Habitat: Prairies, weedy fields, meadows, roadsides, marshes. Range: All of Oregon . Season: Late February to mid-October Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

This page provides background on the Butterflies of Oregon website, and about the photography, the author/photographer, and the purpose and history of ButterfliesofOregon.com. This site will be updated periodically each year, so please visit often! The Project Butterflies of Oregon is both an online guide to Oregon's butterfly species and a record of my endeavor to photograph all of Oregon's regularly occurring and breeding described butterfly species inside the borders of the state. As I continue to pursue images of those remaining species that have as yet eluded me and my camera, I plan to use the website, the information I’ve collected, and the stories about the butterflies and the photos to educate interested folks about native butterflies in Oregon, their habitats, their ecology and their conservation. Public presentations, and educational publications are likely to come with time. Check back here for updates or sign up to be notified of new Blog entries. The Photos All of the photographs of live butterflies in this website were taken by myself, Neil Bjorklund, of wild, un-manipulated butterflies, within the borders of Oregon. These photos are the best images sifted from my library of more than 10,0 00 photos of butterflies in Oregon (as of fall 2023). Considering all the photos that weren't high enough quality to keep, it’s safe to say I’ve taken something like 12,000-15,000 photos of butterflies in Oregon to produce this set of about 300! The images of pinned butterflies from the Oregon State Arthropod Collection were taken by me and by Dana Ross, lepidopterist extraordinaire, with support from Paul Hammond who selected the specimens for us. Thank you, Dana and Paul! I took the live butterfly images primarily in the years 2002-2006 and 2014-2023, so over about 13 years (as of 2023). I have experimented with a variety of cameras and lenses over the years. I began the switch to digital photography in 2003 with my beloved Nikon CoolPix E995. The lion’s share of the photos were taken with these four digital set-ups: FujiFilm X-T1/X-T3 / X-T4 with a Fuji 80 mm F2.8 Macro Lens Sony RX10 Mark IV Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Nikon CoolPix E995 The Photographer I am an Oregon boy through and through, born and raised in SW Portland. The earliest I can remember attempting butterfly photos was on a family vacation in California in about 1968, and my images of Pipevine Swallowtails along the side of Highway 99 taken with my little plastic camera didn't come out very well. Eight years later (1976) I got my first "real" camera - a spiffy Nikormat FT3 SLR! With that camera I took my first decent photograph of a butterfly in Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1979—a Common Buckeye on the shore of Green Bay. Click the "More"button below to see that photo and read more history. More

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for Riding's Satyr. Gallery Prev Next Light Peak, Warner Mtns, Lake Co, July 14 Ridings' Satyr Neominois ridingsii Size: Up to 2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above sandy gray-brown with elongated light tan to white patches on FW containing black eyespots with white centers. Sometimes one small eyespot on HW above. Below similar to above, but with HW having a more grizzled look crossed by zigzag dark lines and light vein lines. Very cryptic and difficult to spot when perched with wings closed. Similar species: None. Host plant: Grasses, but no specific species identified in Oregon . Habitat: Grassy habitats including sage-steppe, plateaus, montane meadows and dry hillsides. Range: Millican Flats area near Pine Mtn in Crook and Deschutes counties, Light Peak in Warner Mtns, Pueblo Mtns, Trout Creek Mtns. Season: Late June to mid-August Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Western Branded Skipper butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Mtn Lakes Wilderness, Klamath Co, August 14 Western Branded Skipper Hesperia colorado Size: Up to 1.25 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above, male orange with very light jagged line of orange spots, narrow dark brown edges (not toothed), bold dark stigmata on FW. Above female brown with jagged row of light orange spots, some almost white spots near wing tip, also with dark brown edges, like teeth pointing inward . Below greenish gray with disjointed white bands, sometimes small or missing, lowest patch of white on outer band not displaced inwardly. Similar species: On HW below Nevada Skipper has the lowest segment of the outer white spot band strongly offset. Juba Skipper is larger, has dark jagged "teeth" on FW above. Uncas Skipper and Sandhill Skipper have prominent light veins below. Host plant: Various grass species. Habitat: Broad range of grass dominated habitats. Range: All of eastern and southwestern Oregon. Season: E arly May to late September Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Coronis Fritillary butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Hand Lake, Lane Co, August 4 Coronis Fritillary Argynnis coronis AKA Speyeria coronis Size: Up to 3 inch wingspan Key ID features: Orange above with thin black veins, black shading near the body, black irregular lines inwardly, submarginal black spot band and black marking along margin like chain links, bolder on female. Below light tan-brown "disc" on HW with large silvery-white oval spots and warm tan submarginal band. Similar species: Callippe Fritillary is smaller, with silver spots showing through above more boldly. Host plant: Violet (Viola ) species, varying by region of state . Habitat: Open meadows, openings in oak-pine forest, lower slopes of mountains in eastern Oregon. Range: Cascade Range, Siskiyou Mtns, all of eastern Oregon except Gilliam, Morrow, Umatilla and Wallowa counties. Season: Early May to early October. Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure .

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Great Purple Hairstreak butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Kelley Cr, Warner Mtns, Lake Co, July 4 Great Purple Hairstreak Atlides halesus AKA Great Blue Hairstreak Size: 1.25 - 1.5 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above bright iridescent blue with black borders. Below black with iridescent blue band adjacent to long tails, red patches next to body and on sides of thorax. Similar species: No similar species in Oregon. Host plant: Oak mistletoe (Phoradendron leucarpum ). Habitat: Oak savanna, with mistletoe. Range: Warner Mtns, Siskiyou Mts, Willamette Valley. Season: Early April to early October Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Butterflies of Oregon Blog Sign up for notices of new blog posts: Subscribe Thanks for submitting! All Posts Neil Björklund Nov 16, 2023 9 min The Lone Wanderer It was wicked-hot, dry, desolate, and extraordinarily beautiful in the desert near the Owyhee River in Malheur County, where I spent a... 237 views 2 comments 8 likes. Post not marked as liked 8 Neil Björklund Sep 22, 2023 7 min A Very Little Big Deal Last summer, I wrote about a visit I made to the pumice desert east of Crater Lake, to check up on our population of Leona's Little Blue,... 236 views 1 comment 3 likes. Post not marked as liked 3 Neil Björklund Aug 17, 2023 12 min The Great Butterfly Scrounge Maybe I could blame it on iNaturalist. Well, maybe a little on my friend John, too. Although John and I are probably about even, since I... 276 views 2 comments 4 likes. Post not marked as liked 4 Neil Björklund Apr 4, 2023 2 min The iNat Revolution Welcome to my first Blog post of the year! I can't wait to share some updates from this new butterfly season with you. In the meantime,... 235 views 1 comment Post not marked as liked Neil Björklund Sep 21, 2022 6 min Yes, We have Volcanos! I've been known to describe my avocation of chasing butterflies in Oregon as a game played on the huge game board of the state of... 175 views 1 comment 6 likes. Post not marked as liked 6 Neil Björklund Sep 15, 2022 7 min Wave the Checkered Flag! I first started looking for the enigmatic Checkered White (Pontia protodice) back in 2004, at Picture Rock Pass, in Lake County. It was,... 122 views 0 comments 3 likes. Post not marked as liked 3 Neil Björklund Sep 9, 2022 7 min Let's Go Dutch! Nope, I'm not talking about coffee--I'm talking about the peak in southern Oregon. You know, Dutchman Peak, in the Siskiyous. It was... 137 views 2 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5 Neil Björklund Aug 28, 2022 5 min Loving Leona Leona's Blue (Philotiella leona) is Oregon's only known endemic butterfly. It has been found only in the pumice flats created by the... 234 views 0 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5 Neil Björklund Aug 18, 2022 8 min The Bigfoot of Butterflies We humans tend to love stories about mysterious critters that may or may not exist or persist out in the wild places. The Northwest's... 235 views 0 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5 Neil Björklund Aug 12, 2022 7 min A Double Scoop of Rocky Road Back in May I visited a few of the sites where Andy Warren had studied azure blues back in the early 2000's. At several sites, mostly in... 114 views 0 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5 Neil Björklund Aug 3, 2022 8 min The Art of Waiting The Nevada Skipper flies very fast and low in treeless habitats on windswept ridges. When the wind is gusting they can just disappear... 167 views 0 comments 3 likes. Post not marked as liked 3 Neil Björklund Jun 7, 2022 11 min A Boy and His Butterfly Earlier this spring, I learned in an unexpected way about an obscure disease called 4H Leukodystrophy. It is an inherited genetic... 405 views 4 comments 6 likes. Post not marked as liked 6 Neil Björklund Apr 29, 2022 9 min Searching for Spring This year, just when we seemed to be heading for the most severe drought in Oregon history, winter seemed to wake up and say "oh, wait... 170 views 0 comments 6 likes. Post not marked as liked 6 Neil Björklund Aug 15, 2021 5 min Silverspotting The Oregon Silverspot (Argynnis zerene hippolyta) is a subspecies of the Zerene Fritillary (Argynnis zerene), found along the Oregon... 353 views 0 comments 6 likes. Post not marked as liked 6 Neil Björklund Aug 8, 2021 12 min Puttin' on the Frits Here in Oregon, as summer pushes on into July and early August, we get into smoke season, but we also get into the season of nymphalids... 226 views 0 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5 Neil Björklund Jul 14, 2021 10 min The Mysterious Case of the Vanishing Checkerspot I was packing for a trip to the southern Blue Mountains to (hopefully) photograph Garita Skipperlings for the first time, when I got the... 252 views 2 comments 3 likes. Post not marked as liked 3 Neil Björklund Jul 10, 2021 9 min The Tao of Skipperlings The Taoist Masters of old speak of the principle of Wu wei, or non-doing, as being central to their way of understanding how the world is... 159 views 0 comments 3 likes. Post not marked as liked 3 Neil Björklund Jun 27, 2021 13 min Heat Zombie and the Bakeoven Butterflies As a second generation native Oregonian, I have always felt some kind of civic duty to photograph the Oregon Swallowtail, our state insect.. 320 views 0 comments 1 like. Post not marked as liked 1 Neil Björklund Jun 6, 2021 6 min Hunting for the Gold Isn't it curious how sometimes when we are looking for one thing, we often find something else that is equally satisfying? 193 views 2 comments 4 likes. Post not marked as liked 4 Neil Björklund May 3, 2021 5 min Chasing Our Swallowtail My 2021 field season started quite a bit later than I'd planned, and sadly I had to skip a trip to the Illinois River in April in search... 211 views 3 comments 5 likes. Post not marked as liked 5