Butterfly (Lepidoptera, Rhopalocera) species

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Overview

Butterflies, along with moths (which are not dealt with in this section), belong to the Order Lepidoptera. We have over 400 species of butterfly in Australia, with 86 species within the borders of the ACT. Our local butterflies belong to five families: the Skippers (Hesperiidae), Blues (Lycaenidae), Nymphs (Nymphalidae), Swallowtails (Papillionidae), and the Whites and Yellows (Pieridae).

While there are a handful of butterfly species which can be observed on the wing at any month of the year in the Canberra region, the butterfly season is generally from September through to April. Most species will fly for only a part of the season however. Butterflies prefer warm, sunny, calm weather, and it will be much easier to find butterflies in these conditions. Some species also prefer to fly at a certain time of the day. It is often easier to observe butterflies at high points in the landscape like hill summits, as the males of many species of butterfly will congregate at such points to set up breeding territories; this behaviour is called hilltopping. Another easy way to find butterflies is to locate flowering plants and watch what butterflies come to visit.

When taking photos of butterflies, it is most helpful to obtain images of both the upperside (dorsal) view of the wings, in addition to the underside (ventral) view of the wings. This makes the identification process much easier for some of the hard-to-identify species. If possible, including features of the butterfly’s surrounds for context can be helpful for determining the relative size of the butterfly. Bear in mind that as a butterfly ages, it can become quite tatty and faded, so that it may have chunks of a wing missing, or appear much paler than it otherwise appears in photos.

Some of the most commonly-observed species around Canberra include the Australian Painted Lady, Meadow Argus, Common Brown, and the Yellow Admiral. In backyard suburban gardens, the Orchard Swallowtail will often be attracted to citrus plants and Cabbage Whites will be drawn to brassicas. Any patch of grassy lawn will attract Common Grass-blues.

Butterflies are the adult stage of the life cycle (so it’s important to note that if you see a small butterfly, it is not going to grow into a larger one, it will stay the same size!). Adult butterflies are the life stage responsible for the reproduction and dispersal of the species; the females lay eggs singly or in clusters on or near the larval food plant; these eggs then hatch into larvae (caterpillars) which are the life stage responsible for eating and growing; these then form a pupa (chrysalis) where the larval stage transforms into the adult butterfly. Some species will overwinter as eggs, or as larvae, or as pupae. Some species are migratory and do not overwinter here at all, and some species are only occasional vagrants to our area.

106 species

Lucia limbaria (Chequered Copper)

Lucia limbaria
Lucia limbaria
Lucia limbaria

Mesodina halyzia (Eastern Iris-skipper)

Mesodina halyzia
Mesodina halyzia
Mesodina halyzia

Nacaduba biocellata (Two-spotted Line-Blue)

Nacaduba biocellata
Nacaduba biocellata
Nacaduba biocellata

Neolucia (genus) (A Heath-blue butterfly)

Neolucia (genus)

Neolucia agricola (Fringed Heath-blue)

Neolucia agricola
Neolucia agricola
Neolucia agricola

Neolucia hobartensis (Montane Heath-blue)

Neolucia hobartensis
Neolucia hobartensis
Neolucia hobartensis

Ocybadistes walkeri (Green Grass-dart)

Ocybadistes walkeri
Ocybadistes walkeri
Ocybadistes walkeri

Ogyris abrota (Dark Purple Azure)

Ogyris abrota
Ogyris abrota
Ogyris abrota

Ogyris amaryllis (Satin Azure)

Ogyris amaryllis
Ogyris amaryllis
Ogyris amaryllis

Ogyris genoveva (Southern Purple Azure)

Ogyris genoveva
Ogyris genoveva
Ogyris genoveva

Ogyris olane (Broad-margined Azure)

Ogyris olane
Ogyris olane
Ogyris olane

Oreixenica correae (Orange Alpine Xenica)

Oreixenica correae
Oreixenica correae
Oreixenica correae

Oreixenica kershawi (Striped Xenica)

Oreixenica kershawi
Oreixenica kershawi
Oreixenica kershawi

Oreixenica latialis (Small Alpine Xenica)

Oreixenica latialis
Oreixenica latialis
Oreixenica latialis

Oreixenica orichora (Spotted Alpine Xenica)

Oreixenica orichora
Oreixenica orichora
Oreixenica orichora

Papilio aegeus (Orchard Swallowtail, Large Citrus Butterfly)

Papilio aegeus
Papilio aegeus
Papilio aegeus

Papilio anactus (Dainty Swallowtail)

Papilio anactus
Papilio anactus
Papilio anactus

Papilio demoleus (Chequered Swallowtail)

Papilio demoleus
Papilio demoleus
Papilio demoleus

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Invasiveness

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Butterflies (Lepidoptera, Rhopalocera)

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2,148,925 sightings of 19,884 species in 6,408 locations from 11,278 contributors
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