Mangrove Buckeye

I thought this butterfly was a Common Buckeye. We found it in Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on the Wulfort Keys Trail on 7 February 2018. This walk was our first on the path, that led to a fishing pier. Months later I stumbled on the picture in Kaufman’s butterfly guide. Common Buckeyes have incomplete, white rings around their outer eyespots, not orange like on this Mangrove Buckeye. Mangrove Buckeyes live in Black Mangrove swamps in southern Florida, exactly the habitat we found this one. They often fly near other buckeye species, but are genetically distinct. This photo is a bit out of order in this account of our 2018 road trip.