Baltimore butterflies and moths

Apparently, Missouri populations prefer gerardias and false foxgloves formerly in genus Gerardia. Taxonomists have reclassified and named these plants. Missouri species include combleaf yellow false foxglove Aureolaria pedicularia , also called A.

Adults visit flowers, carrion, and animals droppings, and they also frequently visit mud puddles and moist spots on the ground. Mostly in the Ozarks; rare in other parts of the state. We represent a southwestern edge of their total territory; most of their North American range is north and east of Missouri.

There is a single brood, with adults flying from late May into early July. Males select low perches to wait for females. On the undersides of host plant leaves, females lay two or three clusters averaging eggs. The caterpillars live together in a silken nest on the food plant their first summer. This nest consists of webbing that starts by covering the top of the plant and keeps extending downward until late summer, when they construct a thicker, smaller web.

They remain inactive in the web until the group moves to the ground in the fall. The pre-hibernation web provides a refuge until cool weather reduces the numbers of predatory insects, spiders, and so on. The webs are not sturdy enough for overwintering. At that point, they gradually break into smaller groups that will overwinter as partially grown larvae in rolled, silked-together leaves.

The following spring, the caterpillars disperse and feed on a wide range of shrubs and nonwoody plants. In , the Baltimore checkerspot was declared the official state insect of Maryland. Some say it was named because its checkered black and orange pattern reminded people of the pattern on the coat of arms used by George Calvert, the English First Baron of Baltimore who was a principal colonizer of Maryland in the s.

The Baltimore oriole, a black and orange bird, received its name for basically the same reason. The bright orange and black pattern apparently serves as a warning to predators that this species is unpalatable or toxic.

Depending on the food plant, they may indeed accumulate bad-tasting chemicals in their bodies, much like monarchs and viceroys do. Butterflies, skippers, and moths belong to an insect order called the Lepidoptera — the "scale-winged" insects.

These living jewels have tiny, overlapping scales that cover their wings like shingles. The scales, whether muted or colorful, seem dusty if they rub off on your fingers.

Many butterflies and moths are associated with particular types of food plants, which their caterpillars must eat in order to survive. Butterfly and Moth Facts. Skip to main content. Google Tag Manager. Baltimore Checkerspot Euphydryas phaeton. More Butterflies and Moths.

In Missouri it is locally abundant in the eastern Ozarks, but rare elsewhere in our state. David Cappaert, Bugwood. Family :. Description :. Caterpillars are black with orange stripes and bands, and rows of branching black spines. Size :. Baltimore checkerspot populations fluctuate greatly from year to year. This medium-sized butterfly 2-inch wingspread can look all-black as it flies, but when it lands you can see its orange and white markings. Its memorable checkerboard pattern is easy to see when it holds its wings upright.

Like the bird we know as the Baltimore oriole, this butterfly is named for the orange and black colors of Lord Baltimore, the British colonizer who founded Maryland in the s. The butterfly is often called the Baltimore for short. Why the bright colors? And why would a bird or other predator want to avoid this butterfly? Its body contains chemicals called iridoid glycosides that make it unpleasant to eat. The butterfly gets these chemicals in its caterpillar stage, when the caterpillar eats certain plants that contain them.

Not surprisingly, the Baltimore caterpillar, too, is protected by warning coloration. It is red-orange and black, and prickly-looking. Female Baltimores lay tiny eggs by the hundreds, either on white turtlehead in wet meadows or narrow-leaf plantain in dry meadows.

What plants do the Baltimore caterpillars eat to get their protective chemicals? They currently have two main host plants, and both contain the same chemicals.

Female Baltimores lay their tiny eggs by the hundreds in clusters see photo on either of these plants. The original host plant is white turtlehead Chelone glabra , a wildflower of moist meadows and stream edges. Deer like to eat it and may be making it scarce. Fortunately, beginning in the s, Baltimores did a surprising thing.

They began using another, more common plant, narrow-leaf plantain Plantago lanceolata for their eggs and caterpillars. This weed arrived in North America with European settlers and grows in relatively dry meadows. By adapting to this new host plant, Baltimores found new food and protection for their caterpillars and also began using a new portion of the environment, namely dry meadows.