Yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I finally spotted my first full-sized butterfly of the spring, which was, not surprisingly, a Mourning Cloak butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa). Unlike some other species that migrate, Mourning Cloak butterflies overwinter with us as adults in a hibernation-like state and awake to mate in the early spring. Generally, therefore, they are among the first butterflies to appear in the spring.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nice one Mike!
I saw a butterfly while hiking in Shenandoah a couple of weeks ago and was so surprised. Maybe it was one of these. It flew by too quickly for me to determine what kind it was. So cool.
It’s a bit early for most butterflies, so it is quite possible that it was one of these. The yellow/golden pattern around the edge of the wings helps to identify them. They are pretty drab when the wings are closed, but when they open their wings, they are pretty spectacular. (Here’s a link to a photo I took in the past of one with opened wings https://michaelqpowell.wordpress.com/2015/06/11/mourning-cloak-butterfly/).
Interesting! Isn’t it amazing they can survive the winter!