Where There Is Royalty, There Must Also Be Commoners

As I pointed out in "Another Royal Sighting," there are two royal lineages in the Order of Lepidoptera: the Monarchs and the Emperors. Where there is royalty, there must certainly be commoners. In fact, there are a number of commoners: the Common Sootywing, the Common Streaky-Skipper, the Common Buckeye and the Common Wood-Nymph (It always helps to have a nymph or two in the Kingdom).

However, the Common Mestra is perhaps the richest of the commoners. The stripe on the margin of its hindwing is usually described as pale orange, but when the sun strikes this stripe at just the right angle, it flashes a bright gold:

In the first four photographs, this Common Mestra is enjoying the nectar of Low Verbena flowers. in the last photo, it has found a patch of Straggler Daisy.

This set of photographs was taken along the Water Loop Trail in Hardberger Park on Monday, October 14, 2013.