An Introduction to Butterflies, Part One with Stefan Schlick

This session is an overview about what a butterfly is (i.e. the language required to read a butterfly field guide) and its life cycle. The basics of when and how to look for butterflies as it is important to understand that there is a seasonality to them and that much of it is tied to host and feeding plants. Finding more than just a handful of species requires leaving the metropolitan areas, yet Stefan will introduce these few urbanites that we can see in our gardens and local parks: Western Tiger Swallowtail, Gray Hairstreak, Cabbage White, Orange Sulphur and Woodland Skipper.

This is a two-part series introducing the butterflies around Portland. Unlike dragonflies, there is little diversity in butterflies near cities and one will have to venture further afield to see them. In part one, we will look at the parts of a butterfly, its life cycle and the how and when of finding butterflies, as well as be introduced to the urban species. In part two, Stefan will introduce the more common butterflies of the area and where to find them. This series is very much geared to a beginner and we will start from scratch. You must register separately for each class.