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left arrowarrow leftTable VIII a  -  Page 51
Airport in Calhoun, Georgia;  October 5, 1987;    
(Magnetic Declination = 2°W:  Subtract 2° for True Bearing, True Heading and True Wind Direction)
Num.    Species    Time Flight Behavior Weather Field Notes
    I         II     III IV Va Vb Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
 Est.
Alt.
Type
of Flt.
Horiz.
Flt.
Vert.
Flt.
Mag.
Bear.
Mag.
Head.
Wind
Dir.
 Wind 
Vel.
Amb.
Temp
Thrm.
Act.
Cloud 
Types 
Start - 8:01 - - - - - - 183° 0.2 m/s 7.0°C no none WW:  Radar detected many targets moving in different directions (birds).  Released weather balloon showed that winds aloft were N.
- - 8:20 - - - - - - 176° 0.9 m/s 8.0°C no - WW:  Radar indicated that high winds were W.  Swifts were flapping at 8:15.   Scans through binoculars only resulted in sightings of birds.
- - 9:00 - - - - - - 189° 0.7 m/s 13.5°C no - A few low-flying D. plexippus were seen. WW:  Radar had detected butterfly-like targets aloft by 8:40.
271 D. plexippus 9:28 100 m flap,
soar,
glide
straight,
circle
climb,
descend
227° - 192° 0.9 m/s - yes - Butterfly started at 6 m and was flapping upward when it encountered a thermal and began soaring in circles and and rapidly gaining altitude.  The butterfly left the thermal at 30 m and was descendng, largely by gliding but with a few bouts of flapping, when it encountered a second thermal at 20 m, began soaring in circles again and quickly climbed to to 60 m.  It then stopped cicling but continued to soar and gain altitude, reaching 100 m before vanishing.