You’re not prepared for them, if you’ve never seen them. Apharitis Acamas is unlike any butterfly you’ll see in the United States or Canada. I remember the first time I came upon them, on that trail in the SPNI refuge reserve. You immediately focus on likening them to any butterfly you’ve ever seen, and you come up, a blank!

This pair were doing the pheromone thing, I think. Both were fine example, and both were fresh. The individual to the left was beautiful, a male I think. His metallic marking shone in the sunlight, those tails ID them as hairstreaks (?), their eyes are otherworldly looking, and the markings of his abdomen bring a smile, so reminding of a clown suit.

Very north central Israel, on the slope of Mt. Meron. 7,000+ miles from Bayonne, New Jersey.

Jeff