A medium butterfly with orange and black wings that often gets mistaken for a Monarch. It can be distinguished from the monarch by its smaller size and the postmedian black line that runs across the veins on the hindwing. The viceroy’s wing color ranges from tawny orange in the north to dark mahogany in the south. The caterpillars sequester the salicylic acid in their bodies, which makes them bitter, and unpalatable to predators. As further protection, the caterpillars, as well as their chrysalis stage, resemble bird droppings.
Forest, Grassland, Wetland, Urban
The viceroy ranges through most of the contiguous United States as well as parts of Canada and Mexico. The westernmost portion of its range extends from the Northwest Territories along the eastern edges of the Cascade Range and Sierra Nevada mountains, southward into central Mexico. Its easternmost range extends along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America from Nova Scotia into Texas.
Abundant
Diurnal
Larvae feed mainly on leaves of willow, poplar and cottonwood; Adults feed on aphid honeydew, carrion, dung, decaying fruit and fungi, and also take nectar from flowers.
Least Concern
