Range:
This species
can be found in the southwestern quarter of the U.S. and in Mexico, and rarely
in the intermountain west. It has been documented in Idaho only in Bannock County. As the host plant for the caterpillar
is oak (Quercus spp.), a non-native genus in Idaho found only where cultivated,
this is a highly unlikely species to find in our area.
Habitat:
This species can be
found in moist, low areas with oaks (Quercus spp.) and conifers.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
Caterpillars feed on the
leaves of oak (Quercus spp.).
Adult:
Butterflies use fruit, flower
nectar, and aphid honeydew for food.
Ecology:
Caterpillars use silk and their own dung pellets to build
a rest that hangs from leaves. Typically there are two generations each summer,
the second of which overwinters in a physiological state called diapause and then pupates in the spring. In desert mountain
habitats there may be only one generation of caterpillars in the summer which
then overwinters before pupating. Adults generally fly from April through September, and
often perch on the tips of branches in the sun.
Conservation:
![]() |
![]() |
Global Rank: | G5; population levels are secure, but may be of concern in the future. |
Opler, P. A., H. Pavulaan, and R. E. Stanford. 1995. Butterflies of North America. Jamestown, North Dakota, USA: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Home Page. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/bflyusa.htm (Version 05Nov98).
Opler, P. A. and A. B.Wright. 1999. A Field Guide to the Western Butterflies. Second Edition. Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, New York, USA, 540 pp.
Pyle, R. M. 1981. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Butterflies. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, New York, USA, 924 pp.
Scott, J. A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, USA, 583 pp.
Stanford, R. E. and P. A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western U.S.A. Butterflies (Including Adjacent Parts of Canada and Mexico). Published by authors, Denver, Colorado, USA, 275 pp.