Alabama Butterfly Atlas

Records from the 1930's, 40's, and 50's indicate that Gorgone Checkerspots were found in Calhoun and Tuscaloosa counties.  There have been no documented sightings since.  These butterflies are adapted to early succession landscapes.  As succession progresses, they move on to other disturbed areas.  In central Georgia, Gorgone Checkerspots produce two, possibly three broods per year.  They fly in late April/May and again in midsummer.  A powerline cut provides the appropriate habitat, and Giant Sunflower (Helianthus giganteus) is the host plant. 

No host plant has yet been established in Alabama. Although Gorgone Checkerspots are not known to be tied to merely one host plant species, according to the Alabama Plant Atlas, Giant Sunflower occurs in Calhoun County, one of two counties where Gorgones have been recorded. Pearl Crescents should be carefully verified to make sure that they are not elusive Gorgones, particularly in early succession habitats.

Gorgone Checkerspot specimens from Alabama are housed at the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, the Yale Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History, and a private collection.  The four individuals at the McGuire Center are part of the Frank Chermock collection. The handwriting on the original label appears to be that of Ralph Chermock (1918-1987).  Dr. Chermock was a University of Alabama faculty member, a long-time lepidopterist, and Frank Chermock's brother. The specimens were collected near Vance, Alabama in 1953.  Four of the Yale specimens were collected by Carl W. Kirkwood (1905-1972), who lived in Summerland, California, just outside Santa Barbara.  He donated butterflies to Yale in 1958. The single specimen at the Smithsonian was probably from Kirkwood, since the handwriting appears to be the same. His collections were made in the Anniston area in the 1930's. Other specimens at Yale were collected in the Anniston area in the 1940's by an unknown person and donated to the museum by the Connecticut Audubon Society.