European Peacock Butterfly!
This butterfly is not on the list of Vermont butterflies, yet it showed up in our pollinator garden on Friday! It is native to Europe and Asia and a few sightings are recorded near Montreal. I reported it to iNaturalist, and there were no other sightings showing in the States. Then, I learned that the first sighting ever in Vermont was on October 5th, 2022 in Calais, Vermont. There have been some sightings in the Montreal area since 1997. The species (Aglais io) was confirmed by two different online sites, so I'm pretty sure it's accurate. Such a great surprise!
52 Days until the Midterms!

