Comma Butterfly Marks Rochester’s Oak Savanna Awakening
Wildly Personal by Lisa Loucks-Christenson | March 25, 2026, 10:40 PM CDT
Rochester’s spring arrived today not with a calendar date, but with a flicker of orange over brown: the season’s first comma butterfly lifting from oak leaves in my private Laurie (Loucks) Burt Wildlife Sanctuary, an oak savanna tucked within the city’s reach.
The butterfly, an anglewing known for the small silver comma on the underside of its hindwing, emerged from the same leaf litter that hid it all winter. Just a week ago, a banded tussock moth offered an early warm spell preview. Today, this comma underlined the change. These butterflies prefer tree sap and overripe fruit more than flowers, and their caterpillars rely on plants like nettles and elms—both present along my savanna edges.
Yet the day’s story didn’t end in the air. Down at Pool Pond, I’ve watched the winter’s cost. During earlier thaws, I found two dragonfly nymphs that didn’t make it—little armored hunters that survived ice only to be caught by timing. This afternoon, I added fresh water to the pond, deepening it by a few inches. It was a simple act, but an intentional one: a chance, however slim, for any remaining nymphs or frog eggs hidden in the mud.
Above the pond, willows have begun to soften at the tips, ready to host mourning cloaks—those velvety, dark butterflies with yellow borders that are often among our earliest spring fliers. In another two months, giant silk moths will take their night shift, drifting through the same airspace on wide, silent wings.
This column serves as the premiere of Wildly Personal for Rochester Sun Times readers: a weekly glimpse into the daily lives of the wildlife that share our region, grounded in one small oak savanna but speaking to any patch of land where someone is paying attention. It also opens the next chapter in my book series, moving from Blue Lupine’s winter into Oak Savanna Winds: Willow Pond.
You don’t need a sanctuary to participate. A roadside ditch, a backyard puddle, or a city tree can be enough. Look for your own punctuation mark of spring—and consider where, in your world, you might add a little water back.
Wildly Personal: Rochester’s Hidden Sanctuary Stories
Wildly Personable™ book, show, column by Lisa Loucks-Christenson launches weekly Rochester nature stories via Old Country Cross Christian Publishing Group. Oak Savanna Winds: Willow Pond (Book 2) follows Blue Lupine. Mourning cloaks next; silk moths June.
Rochester wild neighbors await your discovery.
Wildly Personable™ for Rochester Sun Times | www.oldcountrycross.com
