Texas butterflies at Mineola Nature Preserve....

It seemed weird to be photographing butterflies this late in the fall, but being several hundred miles further south makes a big difference!  We visited the Mineola Nature Preserve one day and there was a nice butterfly garden that was still attracting a few of the late butterflies for the year.

 A Buckeye.....I see these all the time at home in the late summer.

 This one I don't see very often....a Verigated Fritillary.

 This one looked a bit battered around the edges.

I haven't identified this little guy yet, but don't think it is anything uncommon.  It was very beat up.

 For me the biggest thrill were the Gulf Fritillaries.  I do not see these in Indiana.  they have such long wings!  Which explains why they are called "longwing" butterflies....duh!

 I chased several of them around the garden :-)

 The only shot I got of the underside of the wings.

 Not a good shot of this Sulphur, but I don't usually get them open at all, so I'm posting it anyway!

Not sure which Sulphur this is.....Little Yellow or Dainty?  Didn't get that good of photo.

 And just so you know you are in Texas....a herd of Longhorn cattle next door to the reserve.  The grass made it hard to get a good photo, but the horns show up at least!  

 We hiked a short way and there were several nice ponds.

 There is a trail that leads a long an old railroad bed.

 A nice day for walking, but my bad knee was hurting and we didn't spot any birds.  

This totem was at the edge of the park.

I didn't get to see the one bird that I really wanted to see....the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.  Turns out it was the wrong time of year for it and they had moved on down to the gulf area.  I was told that a few were still around, but not easy to find.  My sister says she sees them in her yard, so I will have to keep that in mind when I decide what time of year to visit her next time!