June 5, 2011 - Vanishing Act
Welcome to the Nature Notebook.

You might look twice, scarcely believing your eyes when a red admiral butterfly suddenly disappears. Orange-striped wings with white spots on the leading tips flash among the trees. This large, dark butterfly flies erratically, then vanishes. How can such a colorful butterfly just disappear? Once a red admiral lands on a tree trunk and closes its wings, the darkly mottled underwings camouflage it so well, it is difficult to see. Once it takes flight those patterned wings attract attention. Not as well known as monarchs, these butterflies migrate north from southern states in the spring although they can reside here in milder winters. It is not unusual to see two red admirals chasing each other in the coming dusk or before a thunderstorm. Watch closely, though, as they disappear right before your eyes.

This is PPL's naturalist, Jon Beam, with the Nature Notebook for WVIA.