Arizona Naturalists >>> Sonoran Desert Naturalist >>> Field Guide >>> Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, Centepedes, etc. >>> Butterflies, Moths and Skippers

Sonoran Desert Lepidoptera

With two pairs of often colorful wings, Lepidoptera are among the favorites in the bug world. The color is due to a unique structure of scales on the wings. Moths are similar to butterflies, but lack a distinct club at tip of antennae and wing scales with softer edges. Butterflies are mostly diurnal and moths mostly nocturnal - with many exceptions. Easier to photograph and more photogenic than many insects.

Pipevine Swallowtail Battus philenor Large, irridescent blue-black butterfly with tails. Flies conspicuously especially near larger washes and along riparian habitats. More info	Queen Danaus gilipus Common red-brick colored butterly that flies lazily in riparian habitats and along major Sonoran Desert washes. More info	Monarch Danaus plexippus Very rare butterly in the Sonoran Desert. Few migrants pass though in fall and winter. Lighter orange color than Queen. More info	Painted Lady Vanessa cardui Very common orange and black butterfly especially late fall through winter and spring. Medium sized; visits flowers. More info	Snout Butterfly Libytheana carinenta Dark brown and rusty orange on a smallish butterfly with long, prominent palps. Frequent at Baccharis flowers. More info
Arizona Red Spotted Purple Limenitis arthimis arizonensis Large irridescent blue-black butterfly similar to pipevine but w/o tails. Near willows in moist riparian habitat. More info	Dainty Sulphur Nathalis iole Smallest of the mostly yellow butterflies. Black markings on dorsum; flits close to ground. More info	Sleepy Sulfur Eurema nicippee Butter orange, medium-sized butterfly. Very common across the Sonoran Desert. Visits flowers and puddles. More info	Cloudless Sulfur Phoebis sennae Large, mostly pure yellow and fast flying. Visits flowers but is wary. More info	Giant Swallowtail Papilio cresphontes Very large butterfly mostly seen in town around citrus trees. Lines of bright yellow spots on rich brown backcolor. More info
Orange Sulphur Colias eurytheme Orange-yellow butterfly with a black border. Common near alfalfa fields and along riparian zones in the Sonoran Desert. More info	Southern Dogface Zerene cesonia Bright yellow with black border and 'dog face' pattern on top. Few marking visible on underside. The tips of the forewing are pointed. More info	Checkered White Pontia protodice Mostly white butterfly with dark checkering - amount of checkering varies consideraly. Common near mustards. More info	Empress Leilia Asterocampa leilia Rusty orange-brown butterfly associated with Desert Hackberry shrubs. Row of eye spots on underside. Common along washes/canyons. More info	Common Buckeye Junonia coenia Medium sized butterfly with row of large, distinct eyespots along outer margin. Especially in riparian zones. More info
Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa White or cream border around deep burgandy and with blue spots. Stays close to willows in riparian areas. Early spring flyer. More info	Variegated Fritillary Euptoieta claudia Orange-brown butterfly of late summer and fall. Marked with dark chevrons and row of spots along wing sub-margin. More info	Elada Checkerspot Texola elada Small orange and checkered butterfly closely associated with desert honeysuckle or other acanthaceae plants. More info	Bordered Patch Chlosyne lacinia crocale Medium sized butterfly with hindwing band of white or orange on nearly black background. Common along major desert washes and riparian zones. More info	California Checkerspot Chlosyne californica Medium sized butterfly with bright patch of orange/yellow on nearly black background. Conspicuous band of orange submarginal spots. Common along major desert washes and riparian zones. More info
Edward's Blue Hemiargus ceraunus Small, pale blue-gray butterfly with chevrons below and clear blue above. Dark eye-spot at posterior margin of hind wing. More info	Marine Blue Leptotes marina Common blue butterfly near mesquites in the Sonoran Desert. Top side mostly blue; reverse side a series broken brownish bands and small eye spots at margin. More info	Spring Azure Celastrina argiolus Above silvery blue with a black border on forewing. Below wings are powdery blue with an array of dark or paler dashes and spots. More info	Western Pygmy Blue Brephidium exile Possibly the world's smallest butterfly. Brown with irridescent silvery and blue. Common near flood plains, agriculture, and riparian zones. More info	Acmon Blue Plebejus acmon Blue above with a band of orange on hindwing. Pale with dark spots on reverse. About 2½ cm. Upper foothills in the Sonoran Desert. More info
Palmer's Metal-Mark Apodemia palmeri Smaller than Mormon Metal-Mark with leass extensive coppery background. Frequent at flowers, esp. Seep bacharis. More info	Mormon Metal-Mark Apodemia mormo Rich, coppery-orange and chocolate background with white spots. Small, ca. 25mm wingspan. Foothills of mountains. More info	Fatal Metal-Mark Calephelis nemesis Bright or darker brown flecked with metalic-looking specks. Riparian corridors alighting on flowers. Small. More info	Arizona Sister Adelpha bredowii eulalia Rich brown with bold yellow-orange and white bands. Rare in desert proper. Shady canyons in foothills where oak trees are present. More info	Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta Rare winter-spring visitor to the Sonoran Desert. Dark brown with bright orange-red bands across wings. Hardly ever stops at flowers. More info
Great Purple Hairstreak Atlides halesus At first glance mostly black but irridescent blue and green with changing light direction. Hair-like tails on posterior wing margin. More info	Leda Hairstreak Ministrymon leda Small butterfly with 'fake' antennae at posterior margin. Gray marked with red chevrons. More info	Gray Hairstreak Strymon melinus Top side is dark gray, underside light gray. Red spot near tail. Often around hilltops and at flowers. Common. More info	Scrub Mallow Hairstreak Strymon istapa Small hairstreak with faint, hair-like tails. Top side is gray-brown washed with blue on hindwing. More info	West Goast Lady Vanessa annabella Very similar to Painted Lady (top row) but smaller and with distinctive blue centers to hindwing eyespots. Uncommon in Sonoran Desert. More info
Phyleus Skipper Hylephila phyleus Very common skipper - note hooked club to antennae. Rich orange-brown. Common at flowers and near bermuda grass. More info	Northern White Skipper Heliopetes ericetorum Not so common skipper largely white on top surface and mottled white and brown on reverse (shown here). More info	Golden-headed Scallopwing Staphylos ceos Small, velvety-black skipper with a few small white specks and of course a golden head. Common. More info	Arizona Powdered Skipper Systasea zampa Mostly a less common skipper in Sonoran Desert. Warm, powdery beige flannel look to wings. Alights on damp soil. More info	Funereal Duskywing Erynnis funeralis Velvet-black hind wings with a white border. Patrols along ground near streams or springs often alighting on ground. More info
Golden-banded Skipper Autochton cellus Restricted to highest elevations of Sonoran Desert. Yellow band across rich brown background. More info

Orange Skipperling Copaeodes aurantiacus Small mostly orange skipper. Common along washes and canyon. About 25 mm wingspan. More info	White Checkered-Skipper Pyrgus albescens Black and white checkered. Common most of year in disturbed sites and along washes in the Sonoran Desert. More info	Lichen Moth Cisthene spp. Colorful moths often seen visiting flowers in daylight. Shades of orange, carmine or yellow with blue-black bordering. Several common species. More info	Baccharis Inchworm Moth Elpiste metanemaria Nocturnal moth with pale brown wings and oly about 2 cm wingspan. Thread-like antennae. On or near desert broom. More info	Heliozelid Leaf Miner Coptodisca sp. Neat holes in leaf created by tunneling larvae of a microlepidoptera, this one on cottonwood. More info
Giant Skipper Agathymus sp. Fast flying and hard to spot skipper butterflies. Caterpillars tunnel into agaves. More info	Tomato Hornworm Manduca quinquemaculata Very large, nocturnal moth from large caterpillar found on various plants mostly in nightshade family. Intricate markings in various shades of gray. More info	Five-lined Sphinx Hyles lineata Colorful day-flying moth that visits tubular flowers and can be mistaken for a miniature hummingbird. Common to very common in the Sonoran Desert. More info	Snowberry Clearwing Hemaris diffinis This is a moth, not a bumblebee! Hovers at long-tubular flowers extracting nectar with long tongue. Wings mostly transparent. More info	Condalia Silk Moth Agapema anona Early spring flier with wings white and shades of gray. Southern and southeastern Arizona into Sonora. More info
Prominent Moth Oligocentria alpica Prominent Moths are mostly colored to hide well on bark or shady boulders. Several common and a number of less common species found in the Sonoran Desert. More info	Noctuid Moth Melipotis acontioides One of many, many kinds of noctuids found in the Sonoran Desert. Mostly gray and brown moths almost entirely nocturnal. More info	Bursage Borer Hymenoclea palmii When resting on plant appears as a dried leaf or bark fragment. Long, narrow wings. Larva tunnels inside stems. More info	Hubbard's Silk Moth Syssphinx hubbardi Flannel gray top wings and ruby red underwings. Nocturnal. Beautiful caterpillar on legume trees. More info	Jessica's Underwing Catocala jessica Hides by day looking like bark on a tree. Reveals carmine/scarlet underwings when disturbed. More info

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