Butterflies of Tucson, Arizona

This guide provides an overview of the butterflies that live in and around Tucson, Arizona. Skippers are not covered here, there are so many of them that they deserve their own field guide. There are 5 families of "true" butterflies: Gossamer-winged Butterflies (Lycaenidae, includes ...more ↓

Desert Orangetip

The Desert Orangetip, Anthocharis cethura cethura, is a butterfly of the Pierinae subfamily. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it lives in hills and ridges. Its caterpillars mostly eat plants of the mustard family.

Anthocharis thoosa

The Southwestern Orangetip, Anthocharis thoosa, is native to the southwestern United States.  It inhabits juniper, pinyon juniper, and pinyon woodlands from northern Nevada through Utah and western Colorado south to southeastern California , Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas.  Adult butterflies fly in the spring (January–May).  Caterpillars feed on a variety of mustards, family ...more ↓

Edited by Katja Schulz and Katy Prudic, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)