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Viceroy - Limenitis archippus
Native Species
Global Rank:
G5
State Rank:
S5
Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
BLM:
External Links
General Description
[From Ferris and Brown 1981; Scott 1986; Opler and Wright 1999; Glassberg 2001; Pyle 2002] Forewing 3.1-4.4 cm. Uppersurface bright orange overall (resembles the Monarch, Danaus plexippus), white spots in black marginal bands on both wings and subapical black triangle on forewing, veins black, black postmedian line crossing dorsal and ventral hindwing perpendicular to black veins.
Phenology
One flight in the far north, June to July; two flights in northern US, mostly June and August; four or more flights in the south, spring to fall (Scott 1986). April to October in the south, mainly June to August or September in the north (Glassberg 2001). Mid-May to early October in Colorado (Scott and Scott 1978), early April to late September in Oregon and Washington (Pyle 2002), mid-May to late September in Oregon (Warren 2005), May to August in British Columbia (Guppy and Shepard 2001).
Diagnostic Characteristics
Best determined by combination of uppersurface bright orange overall, black wing margins with white spots, black postmedian line crossing dorsal and ventral hindwing perpendicular to black veins.
Species Range
Montana Range
Range Descriptions
Native
Range Comments
Northwest Territories south and east of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountains to central Mexico except high mountains and arid lands away from water, east through southern Canada and the eastern US (Scott 1986; Oppler and Wright 1999; Glassberg 2001; Pyle 2002); to 2362 m elevation in Colorado (Brown 1957; Scott and Scott 1978), to 915 m elevation in Oregon (Warren 2005). In Montana, reported across much of the state (Kohler 1980; Stanford and Opler 1993). Uncommon to common east of the Rocky Mountains, locally rare west of the Rocky Mountains (Glassberg 2001).
Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
Number of Observations: 27
(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version)
Map Help and Descriptions
Relative Density
Recency
(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)
Migration
Non-migratory; individuals may disperse 2-3 km (Nelson 2003).
Habitat
Watercourses, lake edges, riparian areas, willow thickets, valley bottoms, wet meadows, roadsides, deciduous woodlands (Ferris and Brown 1981; Scott 1986; Opler and Wright 1999; Glassberg 2001; Pyle 2002). Habitat in Montana not described but probably similar.
National Vegetation Classification System Groups Associated with this Species
Forest and Woodland
Deciduous Forest and Woodland
Shrubland
Foothills - Montane Shrubland
Grassland
Lowland - Prairie Grassland
Wetland and Riparian
Alkaline - Saline Wetlands
Alpine Riparian and Wetland
Peatland
Riparian and Wetland Forest
Riparian Shrubland
Wet Meadow and Marsh
Food Habits
Larval food plants include Amelanchier, Betula, Chrysobalanus, Crataegus, Malus, Populus (several species), Prunus, Pyrus, and Salix (several species) (Scott 1986, 1992; Warren 2005). Adults feed on flower nectar (including Asclepias, Bidens, Cleome, Echinacea, Polygonum, Tamarix), aphid honeydew, sap, moisture from rotting wood and fungi, dung, puddles and mud (Downes 1973; Scott 1986, 2014).
Reproductive Characteristics
Females lay eggs singly, preferably on uppersides of host plant leaf tips (Scott 1986). Eggs hatch in about 6 days (depending on temperature), Larval development from L1 to L5 instar and pupa in about 24 days post egg-hatch, adults eclose (emerge from pupae) in about another 12-16 days (James and Nunnallee 2011). Larvae tend to feed at night, build nest from rolled host plant leaf only during hibernation, L3 instar (rarely L1 or L2) overwinters (Scott 1979, 1986; James and Nunnallee 2011). Males perch 1-2 m above ground on vegetation awaiting passing females, also patrol throughout the day along streams near host plants in search of females (Scott 1975b, 1986).
Stewardship Responsibility
References
- Literature Cited AboveLegend:
View Online Publication
Brown, F.M. 1957. Colorado Butterflies. Proceedings; Numbers Three through Seven. Denver Museum of Natural History, Denver, Co.- Downes, J.A. 1973. Lepidoptera feeding at puddle-margins, dung, and carrion. Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 27(2): 89-99.
- Ferris, C.D. and F.M. Brown (eds). 1981. Butterflies of the Rocky Mountains. Univ. of Oklahoma Press. Norman. 442 pp.
- Glassberg, J. 2001. Butterflies through Binoculars: A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Western North America. Oxford University Press.
- Guppy, C.S. and J.H. Shepard. 2001. Butterflies of British Columbia: including western Alberta, southern Yukon, the Alaska Panhandle, Washington, northern Oregon, northern Idaho, northwestern Montana. UBC Press (Vancouver, BC) and Royal British Columbia Museum (Victoria, BC). 414 pp.
- James, D.G. and D. Nunnallee. 2011. Life histories of Cascadia butterflies. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press. 447 p.
- Kohler, S. 1980. Checklist of Montana Butterflies (Rhopalocera). Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 34(1): 1-19.
- Nelson, S.M. 2003. The western viceroy butterfly (Nymphalidae: Limenitis archippus obsoleta): an indicator for riparian restoration in the arid southwestern United States? Ecological Indicators 3: 203-211.
- Opler, P.A. and A.B. Wright. 1999. A field guide to western butterflies. Second edition. Peterson Field Guides. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 540 pp.
- Scott, J.A. 1975b. Mate-locating behavior of western North American butterflies. Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 14:1-40.
- Scott, J.A. 1979. Hibernal diapause of North American Papilionoidea and Hesperioidea. Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 18(3): 171-200.
- Scott, J.A. 1986. The butterflies of North America: a natural history and field guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
- Scott, J.A. 1992. Hostplant records for butterflies and skippers (mostly from Colorado) 1959-1992, with new life histories and notes on oviposition, immatures, and ecology. Papilio new series #6. 185 p.
- Scott, J.A. 2014. Lepidoptera of North America 13. Flower visitation by Colorado butterflies (40,615 records) with a review of the literature on pollination of Colorado plants and butterfly attraction (Lepidoptera: Hersperioidea and Papilionoidea). Contributions of the C.P. Gillette Museum of Arthopod Diversity. Fort Collins, CO: Colorado State University. 190 p.
- Scott, J.A. and G.R. Scott. 1978. Ecology and distribution of the butterflies of southern central Colorado. Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 17(2): 73-128.
- Stanford, R.E. and P.A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of western USA butterflies: including adjacent parts of Canada and Mexico. Unpubl. Report. Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado 275 pp.
- Warren, A.D. 2005. Lepidoptera of North America 6: Butterflies of Oregon, their taxonomy, distribution, and biology. Contributions of the C. P. Gillette Museum of Arthropod Diversity, Colorado State University. Fort Collins, Colorado. 406 pp.
- Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?- Allen, T.J., J.P. Brock, and J. Glassberg. 2005. Caterpillars in the field and garden: a field guide to the butterfly caterpillars of North America. Oxford University Press.
- Brock, J.P. and K. Kaufman. 2003. Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, NY 284 pp.
- Forister, M.L., C.A. Halsch, C.C. Nice, J.A. Fordyce, T.E. Dilts, J.C. Oliver, K.L. Prudic, A.M. Shapiro, J.K. Wilson, J. Glassberg. 2021. Fewer butterflies seen by community scientists across the warming and drying landscapes of the American West. Science 371:1042-1045.
- Forister, M.L., E.M. Grames, C.A. Halsch, K.J. Burls, C.F. Carroll, K.L. Bell, J.P. Jahner, et al. 2023. Assessing risk for butterflies in the context of climate change, demographic uncertainty, and heterogeneous data sources. Ecological Monographs 93(3):e1584. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecm.1584
- Layberry, R.A., P.W. Hall, and J.D. LaFontaine. 1998. The Butterflies of Canada. University of Toronto Press. 280 pp. + color plates.
- Opler, P.A., K. Lotts, and T. Naberhaus, coordinators. 2010. Butterflies and moths of North America. Big Sky Institute, Bozeman, MT. Available at: www.butterfliesandmoths.org (Accessed 15 June 2015).
- Sater, S. 2022. The insects of Sevenmile Creek, a pictorial guide to their diversity and ecology. Undergraduate Thesis. Helena, MT: Carroll College. 242 p.
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