Butterflies beyond their habitat

I enjoyed the article about the giant swallowtail butterflies [“Brilliant Winged Giants,” Sept. 20]. In the article you mentioned that they had been seen as far north as Santa Barbara. I think we may have seen them as far north as Winnemucca, Nev., which is way out of the region where citrus could grow.

I had one land on my shoulder, and it was definitely as big as 6 inches across.

Jean Harrison Reno

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Usually I see the tiger swallowtails, but lately I have been seeing butterflies like the one in the photo. They seem to be attracted to the avocado tree and Valencia orange. I had better start planting some rue. I tried planting some catchfly because it is supposed to be sticky.

I wanted to discourage the destructive pests who attend school up the street, so I planted it by the sidewalk hoping they would get goo on their hands if they try to pick them.

I found out that catchfly attracts monarchs. I saw one feeding on the nectar.

Grace Hampton Burbank