Mitchell's Satyr
The Mitchell's Satyr belongs to the family Satyridae. The Satyrs are some of the most endearing butterflies. Their name is suits them: The mythological Satyr is an intoxicated forest-dweller. The goat-like man is a randy creature,
and I have seen local Satyr butterflies mating in mid air, with the female struggling to fly against the male's weight.Even when flying solo, their flight pattern is dopey, slow, heavy and labored, and they have very round wings. Unlike many butterflies, the Satyrs don't often bask in the sun with their wings spread out flat, so observers will often see them in profile. with the underwings showing. Photo: Tondo of an Attic red-figure plate, 520–500 BC. From Vulci
The Mitchell’s satyr lives in Michigan and Indiana in prairie fens, which are a combination of a prairie and a bog. The background map in this print is of the Paw Paw River watershed in Michigan. The USGS topographic maps
have symbols representing wetlands that I incorporated in the background as well. The caterpillars eat foxtail sedge and tussock sedge, but their habits aren't fully understood. The cause of their endangered status isn’t clear. The print is made from two color blocks.Photo credit: Andrew Hoffman's "Marshy Fen" (in Indiana) on Flickr.
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