If we would have to crown a butterfly of the year by now, it would be the Hackberry Emperor. I can’t speak for the rest of the county or state, but here, in and above the Little Maquoketa River Valley, we see them presently by the hundreds if not more. We have quite a few hackberry trees in our woods here, their only larval food plant, and we see quite a few every year around. But this year is different and their numbers are much higher.
They like the sunny spots on our front porch in the evening and making the photo with the SIGMA 150, f/2.8 Macro lens is not a difficult task.