red-dragonfly

Rails, gators, and deer flies.

golden-damselfly

checkered-skipper-pyrgus

Checkered-skipper (Pyrgus sp.). Read more: Big Thicket revisited.

calosoma-caterpillar-hunter

If it wants to grow into a butterfly, that caterpillar had better watch out for predators like this one -- a jewel-hued Calosoma beetle.

butterflies-at-seep

Just loose bark? Look again. I counted 15 butterflies (all hackberry emperors (Asterocampa celtis) except for one question mark), which were apparently sipping seeping sap!

question-mark-butterfly

Question mark (Polygonia interrogationis). Read more: Butterfly forest.

red-admiral

Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta).

hackberry-emperor

Hackberry emperor (Asterocampa celtis). Read more: Butterfly forest.

question-mark-folded

See those tiny white marks? Somebody thought that looked like a question mark ... and so the butterfly was named.

question-mark-adult

An adult question mark butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis).