Common Buckeye
Junonia coenia Hübner, [1822]
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae
Identification: Upperside is brown. Forewing with 2 orange cell bars and 2 eyespots; part of white subapical band appears in the largest, lower eyespot. Hindwing has 2 eyespots; upper one is largest and contains a magenta crescent. Underside of hindwing is brown or tan in the wet season (summer) form and rose-red in the dry season (fall) form.
Wing Span: 1 5/8 - 2 3/4 inches (4.2 - 7 cm).
Life History: Males perch during the day on low plants or bare ground to watch for females, flying periodically to patrol or to chase other flying insects. Females lay eggs singly on leaf buds or on upperside of host plant leaves. Caterpillars are solitary and eat leaves. Caterpillars and adults overwinter but only in the south.
Flight: Two to three broods from May-October, throughout the year in the Deep South.
Caterpillar Hosts: Plants from the snapdragon family including snapdragon (Antirrhinum) and toadflax (Linaria); the plantain family including plantains (Plantago); and the acanthus family including ruellia (Ruellia nodiflora).
Adult Food: Favorite nectar sources are composites including aster, chickory, gumweed, knapweed, and tickseed sunflower. Dogbane, peppermint, and other flowers are also visited.
Habitat: Open, sunny areas with low vegetation and some bare ground.
Range: Resident in the southern United States and north along the coasts to central California and North Carolina; south to Bermuda, Cuba, Isle of Pines, and southern Mexico. Adults from the south's first brood migrate north in late spring and summer to temporarily colonize most of the United States and parts of southern Canada. Comments: The eyespots may be used to scare away predators.
Conservation: Not required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Get your BAMONA Gear!
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 169 - 192 of 8948 verified sightings
Observation date: May 03, 2023
Submitted by: polylepis
Region: Galveston County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: May 04, 2023
Observation date: Apr 29, 2023
Submitted by: lilkriskattn
Region: Texas, Montague County, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 30, 2023
Observation date: Jul 29, 2022
Submitted by: Birderbobt51
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Apr 25, 2023
Observation date: Apr 22, 2023
Submitted by: Ken Cheeks
Region: Edgefield County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Apr 24, 2023
Observation date: Apr 20, 2023
Submitted by: mikeminium
Region: Hopkins County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 20, 2023
Observation date: Apr 20, 2020
Submitted by: ObserverofGod'sart
Region: Bexar County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 04, 2023
Observation date: Apr 02, 2023
Submitted by: Rob Williams
Region: Leon County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Apr 03, 2023
Observation date: Mar 27, 2023
Submitted by: ObserverofGod'sart
Region: Bexar County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 01, 2023
Observation date: Mar 29, 2023
Submitted by: KShell
Region: Dixie County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Mar 29, 2023
Observation date: Mar 26, 2023
Submitted by: hiker96
Region: Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Mar 26, 2023
Observation date: Oct 10, 2019
Submitted by: greenesnake@yah...
Region: Lake County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Mar 10, 2023
Observation date: Aug 11, 2019
Submitted by: Markus M
Region: Jalisco, Mexico
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Feb 25, 2023
Observation date: Feb 11, 2023
Submitted by: jmgesell
Region: Manatee County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 16, 2023
Observation date: Oct 04, 2016
Submitted by: Heron_Wing
Region: United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Feb 12, 2023
Observation date: Aug 04, 2014
Submitted by: hockeybruce7
Region: Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Feb 04, 2023
Observation date: Nov 04, 2016
Submitted by: margueritehamilton
Region: Canada
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jan 29, 2023
Observation date: Jun 06, 2022
Submitted by: alaimins
Region: DuPage County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jan 21, 2023
Observation date: Nov 08, 2022
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Hidalgo County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 09, 2023
Observation date: Dec 21, 2022
Submitted by: Erik Stabl
Region: Hillsborough County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 22, 2022
Observation date: Nov 29, 2022
Submitted by: lkennedywilson
Region: St. Johns County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 01, 2022
Observation date: Nov 02, 2022
Submitted by: bonfrey
Region: Pickens County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Nov 24, 2022
Observation date: Nov 23, 2022
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Monroe County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Nov 23, 2022
Observation date: Nov 16, 2022
Submitted by: John Gibbons
Region: Pinellas County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Nov 18, 2022
Observation date: Nov 13, 2022
Submitted by: John Koerner
Region: Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Nov 14, 2022
- ‹ previous
- 8 of 373
- next ›