Rick Cech led the group. He is an expert lepidopterist. I use his book, Butterflies of the East Coast: An Observer’s Guide: Cech, Rick, Tudor, Guy: Amazon.com, to identify butterflies.
Pine Barrens Mix
Pine Barrens
Pine Barrens Plants
I enjoy learning about the butterflies host plants. Bearberry is the host plant for the Hoary Elfin. And blueberry is the host plant for Spring Azures. Some more information here: New Jersey Butterfly Families.
A lot of the plants that we saw are native to the area. Pyxidanthera barbulata grows in wet sands and peaty sands. It thrives in pine barrens, pine savannas, and pine flatwoods. It is also found on pocosin margins and at the edges of sandhill seepage bogs. Pyxidanthera barbulata occurs on the coast from Long Island to New Jersey and Virginia to South Carolina.
The Pine Barrens in New Jersey is home to several species of trees, including:Â
- Atlantic white cedar (Chamaecyparis thyoides), red (or swamp) maple (Acer rubella), sour gum (Nyasa sylvatica), and swamp magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) are also present in the Pine Barrens.
- Pitch pine (Pinus rigida) is the most abundant tree in the Pine Barrens.
- Shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) is also present, but not as abundant.
- Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) and pond pine (Pinus serotina) are present and fairly commonly encountered in the southern regions of the Pine Barrens.
- Virginia Pines are present in some areas.
New Jersey Pine Barrens history – Wikipedia
Pine Barrens Odonates
A few dragonflies that I found in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey.
Pine Barrens Lepidoptera
We attended a field trip to the Pine Barrens in New Jersey. The trip was led by Rick Ceck. It was organized by the Linnaean Society of NY. The trip was focused on butterflies. A good source for what might be seen is at the New Jersey Butterfly Club. It was a log trip and covered at least 4 locations in southern New Jersey. The group saw 15 species of lepidoptera.
Landscapes in New Jersey
The first image is the pond by Lucille’s Country Cooking where we stopped for breakfast at the beginning of the Pine Barrens trip. At the end of the trip Marc and I stopped at the Wetlands View and after that ate dinner at the Old Causeway Steak and Oyster House.
Plants in the Pine Barrens
I like to try to identify wildflowers. I use iNaturalist and the internet. The red maples are seeding and from a distance it looks like the trees have red flowers. 5 of 8 posts.
Butterflies in the Pine Barrens
Marc and I went with the Linnaean Society of NY led by Rick Cech to look for butterflies in the Pine Barrens (New Jersey Pine Barrens – Wikipedia and about Pine barrens – Wikipedia) of New Jersey on April 23, 2023. Rick Cech is the author of Butterflies of the East Coast… I of 8 posts.
Pine Barrens Flora
This third and last post on the Pine Barrens shows what a lot of the area looks like inland and a few of the plants.
