The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly is a bright orange butterfly in the subfamily Heliconiinae of the family Nymphalidae. That subfamily was formerly set apart as a separate family, the Heliconiidae. The Heliconiinae are "longwing butterflies", which have long, narrow wings compared to other butterflies.
Pieris rapae is a small- to medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is known in Europe as the small white, in North America as the cabbage white or cabbage butterfly, on several continents as the small cabbage white, and in New Zealand as the white butterfly. The butterfly is recognizable by its white color with small black dots on its wings, and it can be distinguished from P. brassicae by its larger size and the black band at the tip of its forewings.
The small heath is a butterfly species belonging to the family Nymphalidae, classified within the subfamily Satyrinae. It is the smallest butterfly in this subfamily. The small heath is diurnal and flies with a noticeable fluttering flight pattern near the ground. It rests with closed wings when not in flight. It is widespread in colonies throughout the grasslands of Eurasia and north-western Africa, preferring drier habitats than other Coenonympha, such as salt marshes, alpine meadows, wetlands, and grasslands near water. However, habitat loss caused by human activities has led to a decline in populations in some locations.
Anthocharis belia, the Moroccan orange tip, is a butterfly of the family Pieridae. It is found in northwestern Africa. The length of the forewings is 18–20 millimetres (0.7–0.8 in).
Anthocharis midea, the falcate orangetip, is a North American butterfly that was described in 1809 by Jacob Hübner. It belongs to the family Pieridae, which is the white and sulphurs. These butterflies are mostly seen in the eastern United States, and in Texas and Oklahoma. They eat the nectar of violets and mustards. They tend to live in open, wet woods along waterways, in open swamps, and less often in dry woods and ridgetops. This species is a true springtime butterfly, being on the wing from April to May.
Anthocharis sara, the Sara Orangetip is one of three species in the Sara Orangetip complex. It is a California endemic butterfly with populations extending from Baja California into extreme southwest Oregon. The common name, Pacific Orangetip, is obsolete since its implied distribution includes two separate species.
Leptidea sinapis, or the wood white butterfly of the family Pieridae, is a small white butterfly that is mainly found in England, Ireland, and Northern Europe. The butterfly has white wings with grey or yellow markings near the center or tip of the wing. It flies slowly and low over its shrubbery habitat. Males initiate courtship with females and can mate multiply, while females tend to only mate once in their lifetime.
The cabbage looper is a medium-sized moth in the family Noctuidae, a family commonly referred to as owlet moths. Its common name comes from its preferred host plants and distinctive crawling behavior. Cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage, bok choy, and broccoli, are its main host plant; hence, the reference to cabbage in its common name. The larva is called a looper because it arches its back into a loop when it crawls.
Euchloe ausonides, the large marble or creamy marblewing, is a species of butterfly that occurs in western North America. It lays eggs on the terminal flower buds of a variety of plants in the mustard family, including introduced Eurasian species, and the larvae feed on the buds, flowers and fruit of these plants. In California, it has witnessed population declines since the 1980s, especially in the Central Valley and the Bay Area. In Washington, subspecies the island marble butterfly was listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act in 2020.
The queen butterfly is a North and South American butterfly in the family Nymphalidae with a wingspan of 80–85 mm. It is orange or brown with black wing borders and small white forewing spots on its dorsal wing surface, and reddish ventral wing surface fairly similar to the dorsal surface. The ventral hindwings have black veins and small white spots in a black border. The male has a black androconial scent patch on its dorsal hindwings. It can be found in meadows, fields, marshes, deserts, and at the edges of forests.
Battus philenor, the pipevine swallowtail or blue swallowtail, is a swallowtail butterfly found in North America and Central America. This butterfly is black with iridescent-blue hindwings. They are found in many different habitats, but are most commonly found in forests. Caterpillars are often black or red, and feed on compatible plants of the genus Aristolochia. They are known for sequestering acids from the plants they feed on in order to defend themselves from predators by being poisonous when consumed. The adults feed on the nectar of a variety of flowers. Some species of Aristolochia are toxic to the larvae, typically tropical varieties. While enthusiasts have led citizen efforts to conserve pipevine swallowtails in their neighborhoods on the West coast, the butterfly has not been the subject of a formal program in conservation or protected in legislation. The butterfly is however of "Special Concern" in Michigan, which is on the Northern limit of its range.
The buck moth is a common insect found in oak forests, stretching in the United States from peninsular Florida to New England, and as far west as Texas and Kansas. It was first described by Dru Drury in 1773. The larvae typically emerge in a single generation in the spring. The larvae are covered in hollow spines that are attached to a poison sac. The poison can cause symptoms ranging from stinging, itching and burning sensations to nausea. Subspecies Hemileuca maia maia is listed as endangered in the US state of Connecticut. Subspecies Hemileuca maia menyanthevora, the bog buck moth, is federally endangered, and also protected by Canada and the state of New York. There were five populations known historically but only three still survive, one in the US and two in Canada.
Orgyia antiqua, the rusty tussock moth or vapourer, is a moth in the family Erebidae.
With over 850 species, the genus Nomada is one of the largest genera in the family Apidae, and the largest genus of cuckoo bees. Cuckoo bees are so named because they enter the nests of a host and lay eggs there, stealing resources that the host has already collected. The name "Nomada" is derived from the Greek word nomas, meaning "roaming" or "wandering."
The variable checkerspot or Chalcedon checkerspot is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found in western North America, where its range stretches from Alaska in the north to Baja California in the south and extends east through the Rocky Mountains into Colorado, Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming. The butterfly is usually brown or black with extensive white and yellow checkering and some red coloration on the dorsal wing. Adult wingspan is 3.2–5.7 cm (1.3–2.2 in). Adult butterflies feed on nectar from flowers while larvae feed on a variety of plants including snowberry (Symphoricarpos), paintbrush (Castilleja), Buddleja, Diplacus aurantiacus and Scrophularia californica.
Papilio palamedes, the Palamedes swallowtail or laurel swallowtail, is a North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae.
The western tailed-blue is a Nearctic non-migratory butterfly that commonly takes flight during the spring and summer seasons of March–July. They can be best classified as having a presence of a tail on their hindwing, an upper surface that's bluish while the under surface is chalky-white with occasional black spots, and an orange spot toward the base of their tail. Their wingspan ranges from 0.875 to 1.125 inches. Larvae feed on various plant species including Astragalus, Lathyrus, Oxytropis, and Vicia. Adults feed on various things such as flower nectar, horse and coyote manure, urine, and mud.
Parnassius smintheus, the Rocky Mountain parnassian or Rocky Mountain apollo, is a high-altitude butterfly found in the Rocky Mountains throughout the United States and Canada. It is a member of the snow Apollo genus (Parnassius) of the swallowtail family (Papilionidae). The butterfly ranges in color from white to pale yellow-brown, with red and black markings that indicate to predators it is unpalatable.
Lycaena rubidus, the ruddy copper, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in the western mountains of North America. Adults lay their eggs on plants of the genus Rumex, which later become the larval food plants. This butterfly gets its name from the brightly colored wings of the males, which are important in sexual selection. Its larvae exhibit mutualism with red ants, and are often raised in ant nests until they reach adulthood. Adults are on wing from mid-July to early August.
Climaciella brunnea, known sometimes by the common names wasp mantidfly, western mantidfly, and brown mantidfly, is a predatory neuropteran insect in the family Mantispidae.
