Zebra Longwing Photos
The discussion below is courtesy of Harry Pavulaan.
At about the same time this Zebra was seen, a few Zebra Longwings were reported just outside Charlottesville, VA. This follows a continuing rash of Zebra reports over the past few years in the northeast as far north as Ithaca, N.Y., Westchester County, N.Y., Providence, R.I., and previously in Harry Pavulaan's Herndon, VA, garden.
There are two schools of thought on this. The first is that all or most of these butterflies, in this case Zebra Longwings, are either deliberate releases or escapees from butterfly houses. The second is that these are naturally-occurring migrants. There are only two butterfly houses in the D.C. area that have Zebras: the National Zoo and Brookside Gardens in Wheaton, MD. The odds of escapees making it to Herndon and Reston to wind up in the gardens of butterfliers is rather improbable. Similarly, butterfly houses are rather few, and the chances of butterfliers happening across an escapee some many miles away is similarly remote (although we know that they DO occasionally escape, as evidenced in the gardens surrounding these facilities). Deliberate releases are possible; however, Zebras are no longer authorized for interstate transport and release to the northeast, so any dealers shipping these are taking a chance with draconian fines and loss of license.
It seems likely that the 100-fold increase in butterfly watchers in recent years has permitted the observation and documentation of previously unknown movements in butterflies. Nothing is keeping these butterflies from leaving their natural overwintering areas. Zebras in particular migrate way into the Great Plains most years, so why can't they do it out east?
If you see a Zebra Longwing in your Washington, D.C. Metro area garden, please report it to Harry Pavulaan at Hpavulaan@aol.com or Dick Smith at Richard.Smith@jhuapl.edu.
To see a photo of the Zebra Longwing seen in Glen Arm, MD, one month after this sighting, click here.