King's hairstreak, Satyrium kingi (Klots and Clench, 1952), is rarely encountered throughout its range, with relatively little known about its life history and behavior. While adults can be difficult to study in the field, observations of caterpillars may inform management as their presence and position on host trees, Symplocos tinctoria, elucidates both habitat and host tree preferences. We surveyed for King's hairstreak caterpillars and adults in three management units in a Maryland floodplain forest. The units were managed with either prescribed fire and/or harvesting timber and also differed in time-since-management. Caterpillars were surveyed at night using UV flashlights from the ground and in the canopy using an articulated lift. We examined caterpillar frequency on different size classes of S. tinctoria within the three management units, and examined the ratio of caterpillar heights relative to the height of occupied S. tinctoria trees. We did not find any statistical differences in caterpillar frequency across different tree heights. The mean ratio of caterpillar heights from the ground relative to the height of the tree appeared normally distributed. We could not differentiate between management units in the model due to the lack of replication for time-since-management, however our observations and results may have practical implications for land managers.
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4 June 2024
Flying High Or Laying Low? Searching for King's Hairstreak (Satyrium kingi) Caterpillars from the Ground and in the Canopy
Jennifer A. Selfridge,
Robert T. Meyer,
Mallory A. Hagadorn
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articulated lift
host plant
prescribed fire
Symplocos tinctoria
UV flashlight