Forest ringlet butterfly, Tararua Forest Park

[Colin Miskelly]

Kia ora,

I have loaded the following on iNaturalist, but with no image I fear it will not get verified:

7 Feb 2025

Pale brown fast-flying butterfly, similar size to yellow admiral. Orange bands with eyespots on upperwing, underwing with bold bands of deep pink and white, with row of eyespots. Feeding on flowers of Olearia lacunosa at 1160 m asl, frequently leaving to chase small moths before returning. Too high (5 m) to attempt cell phone photography. Watched from 2 vantage points with 8x binoculars. The site is 100 m down the track from the bush edge on the north side of Kahiwiroa, with an extensive patch of Gahnia on forest floor.

Ngā mihi
Colin

[paradoxdinokipi]

You can attach a field sketch of the observation to get it verified to Research Grade, as iNat is for everyone and geared towards all forms of life and there's complete beginners alongside experts its understandable that observations need some 'solid proof' (ie a photo/field-sketch or recording).

[Colin Miskelly]

I had another closer sighting of a forest ringlet butterfly in Tararua Forest Park yesterday, about 1.5 km from Te Matawai Hut (15 km north of the sighting on 7 February). I have posted a poor cellphone image on iNaturalist (it flew before I could move closer).

https://inaturalist.nz/observations/262790820

Another tramper gave me a very good description of a forest ringlet (which he had never heard of) that was within touching distance at a site about 1 km south of the one I saw.

Colin