Hairstreaks
Last spring I met a couple hairstreaks, a Red-banded Hairstreak and a Banded Hairstreak . Or at least I think it's a Banded Hairstreak; the tricky Hickory Hairstreak is notoriously similar. A lot depends on how long you consider that bluish area under the orange spot to be, apparently [1]. The hairstreaks are named for a characteristic that isn't apparent given the precision of my pictures. In most species, the tail (really the end of the abdomen) has small hairs present [2]. Despite the Banded Hairstreak and the Red-banded Hairstreak having similar names, they're in different genera. They're certainly related, but both have closer relatives than each other. Though small, most hairstreaks have a clean/crisp look. Once you see a few of them, you'll probably get a hairstreak vibe when you see the next 1. I've previously shown you other hairstreaks: Gray Hairstreak and Juniper Hairstreak . Red-banded Hairstreak June 15, 2023 at Sourland Mountain Preserve Photo ...