Subject: Yellowjackets vs. butterflies(?)

From: Kenelm Philip <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 1995 17:10:46 -0800

Last summer, the Fairbanks area had the highest concentration of
yellowjackets (genus _Vespula_) that I have ever seen in the 30 years I
have lived here (or anywhere else, for that matter).
        This summer, most species of butterflies are at something like 2
percent or less of their normal abundance (estimated, not measured!). The
exceptions are the following: adult hibernators (_N. antiopa_ and such);
butterflies in tundra habitats on hilltops; and those species of butter-
flies that fly on odd-numbered years only in Interior Alaska (_Erebia
disa_, _Oeneis jutta_, etc.).
        I just returned from a (most successful) collecting trip to Tok
and the Nabesna Road (Wrangell-St. Elias National Park)--and found that
once I got 100 miles from Fairbanks the butterflies were out in near-record
numbers. The yellowjackets were no problem last summer in the Park, accord-
ing to the staff.

        It seems probable that the yellowjackets were responsible for the
decrease in butterfly numbers in the Fairbanks area. Can anyone come up with
a similar case--or with another explanation for the situation? Note that
last winter in Fairbanks was milder than usual, with a somewhat lighter
snowpack than average--but similar winters in the past had no such effects.

                                                        Ken Philip
[email-masked]

---

From: David Powell <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 17 Jun 1995 21:15:51 -0700

On June 9, I visited a tundra covered dome in the Seward Peninsula 72
miles north of Nome, Alaska.  For those in the birding community,
this is near Coffee Dome, and the closest location to Nome where
Bristle-thighed Curlew can be found.  While searching for the curlew,
I was surprised to find 3 species of butterflies flying.  I expected
them to be flying later in the season, not in early-mid June.

I saw many of what I identified as Banded Alpine (Erebia fasciata),
and many small fritillaries that I think are Arctic Fritillary
(Boloria chariclea).  I also observed one individual arctic, which
seemed to me to most closely resemble Boreal Arctic (Oeneis bore).
 In looking at the list published by the North American Butterfly
Association, I noticed that they have Oeneis bore marked for not
being positively recorded in North America, with only the
White-veined Arctic (Oeneis taygete) of the pair being recorded in
NA.  I also read in Tilden and Smith's Western Butterflies that the
interrelationship of these two species is unclear.

I have two questions:

1)  What is the status of Oeneis bore and Oeneis taygete in arctic
Alaska, particularly the Seward Peninsula?

2)  Are the 3 species that I think I saw reasonable in this location
and at this time of year?

Thanks for any assitance that can be provided.

--
David Powell
Half Moon Bay, CA
[email-masked]