“In Lupine fields of blue I tread

Where sun and Viceroy rule,

And Meadowhawks with Robber flies

Engage in ancient duel.

  There’s something about a walk through a sunny meadow that inspires bad verse. When that meadow is flush with blooming wild lupines, as was an open glade at the Petersburg Game Area, the inspired verse is bound to be Nitrogen enriched. Petersburg is located in the sandy region of western Monroe County and is one of the few regions in the state where the Lupine thrives.

  Lupines are members of the legume family – a group known as the Fabaceae or bean family. (Supermodel Fabio is a human bean, so one could conclude that he too must be in this family- yes? No.)  Legumes are known for their ability to fix Nitrogen from the atmosphere and enrich the soil and thus my verse-enrichment comment.

  I have no excuse for the Fabio comment except that lupines are supermodels of the flower world.  These fantastic plants bloom in upright spikes with dozens of flowers each. Individually (see here), the flowers look like tiny bonnets and are very much like garden pea flowers. The lower two petals envelop the delicate floral structures (the reproductive parts) like a pair of cupped hands. A light downward pressure, such as applied by a landing bee, exposes the pistil and stamens for pollination (see here).

  These lupines sprang forth due to the encouragement rendered by an earlier controlled burn at the site. Periodic fires are employed by the MDNR to control the woody vegetation and return the place to something closer to its native Oak opening condition. The mid-spring meadow that flourishes in these ashes is also host to Wild Strawberries, Pearly Everlasting, Salsify, and native grasses.  Mid-day in that mid-spring meadow is a butterfly, dragonfly and robber fly paradise.    

  Meadowhawks were the predominate dragonflies but several butterfly species were active in the sunny glade. A newly minted Viceroy allowed herself to be photographed and then carefully plucked from her perch for an underwing portrait.  Nearby, an American Copper flashed some colors and along the shady edge a Little Wood Satyr danced in the dappled sunlight.

  Painted Ladies were present on this day also, but only in larval form on Pussytoes.  To find them, I had to bend down low to investigate one of the Pearly Everlasting (a.k.a. Pussytoe) patches. The growing caterpillars weave several leaves together to form a protective chamber (like this) where they can eat away at the “Toes” in relative safety. Most of the chambers were empty but one did contain a spiny Painted Lady larva that squinted as it was exposed to the bright sunlight.

  One butterfly not in evidence in the Lupine patch was a tiny butterfly called the Karner Blue. It used to be found there but disappeared sometime in the 1980’s. This tiny species is a federally endangered insect that depends upon the wild Lupine for its existence. The larvae feed solely on this plant.

  Researchers are looking to re-introduce the Karner Blue to its old haunts once the food plants are dense enough to support a new colony. Until that time, we’ll have to be satisfied with this incredible piece of meadow without its extra shade of blue.