Crossline skippers (Polites origenes) foraging on smooth coneflower

Smooth coneflower (Echinacea laevigata) is a perennial herb that lives in open grasslands in VA, NC, SC and GA. It is not to be confused with its close relative and commercially available purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea. According to botanist Ronald L. Mc Gregory, Echinacea plants are self-incompatible meaning they require pollen from another plant and therefore depend on insect pollinators for cross-pollination.