Sep 022014
I was thrilled to be able to get quite close to this Little Wood Satyyr (Megisto cymela) on my Piney Woods Church Road walk earlier this afternoon. I suspect its “beard” is what gives it the name of satyr, though I wasn’t able to find that in any of my field guides or favored websites. Along the way, I did find out that satyrs tend to fly close to the forest floor, travelling with a quick, bobbing motion and occasionally landing on low vegetation, like this grapevine leaf. Satyrs do not pollinate butterflies, but instead consume the sap of trees, as well as bits of dung, fermenting fruit, and rotting fungi.
