Goatweed Leafwing
Anaea andria Scudder, 1875
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Charaxinae
Identification: Underside looks like a dead leaf. Male summer form is dull red with a barely hooked forewing tip, and a short tail on the hindwing. Male winter form is redder with more dark markings, a definitely hooked forewing tip, and a longer tail than the summer form. Both female forms are lighter red and have an irregular yellow submarginal band. The winter female form has hooked forewing tips.
Wing Span: 2 3/8 - 3 1/4 inches (6 - 8.2 cm).
Life History: Flight is swift, strong, and erratic. Males perch in clearings or on ridgetops to wait for females. Eggs are laid singly under host plant leaves; caterpillars eat leaves. A caterpillar changes shelters as it grows: first it perches on a leaf midvein, then lives in the shelter of a folded leaf, and finally rests in a rolled-up leaf. Adults hibernate, then mate in the spring.
Flight: The winter form flies from August-May, the summer form from July-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Goatweed (Croton capitatum), Texas croton (C. texensis), and prairie tea (C. monanthogynus); all in the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae).
Adult Food: Sap, rotting fruit, dung, bird droppings.
Habitat: Deciduous woods and scrub, especially along waterways; open fields, roadsides, railroad tracks, and other places.
Range: Eastern Wyoming and eastern Colorado south to New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas; east to Michigan, South Carolina, Virginia, and the Gulf States.
Conservation: Not usually of conservation concern.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Comments: NULL
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 1249 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 16, 2020
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 27, 2020
Observation date: Jul 12, 2020
Submitted by: Jay Brasher
Region: Lincoln County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: dbruce
Verified date: Jul 25, 2020
Observation date: Mar 25, 2020
Submitted by: NMElaine
Region: Grant County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 09, 2020
Observation date: May 06, 2018
Submitted by: schaarschmidt
Region: Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: dbruce
Verified date: Jul 04, 2020
Observation date: Apr 26, 2020
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 27, 2020
Observation date: Sep 30, 2019
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 22, 2020
Observation date: Apr 21, 2020
Submitted by: Eric Wood
Region: Callaway County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 01, 2020
Observation date: Mar 25, 2020
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: May 13, 2020
Observation date: Mar 29, 2020
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Apr 01, 2020
Observation date: Mar 25, 2020
Submitted by: Stephen G.
Region: Benton County, Arkansas, United States
Verified by: Stephen G.
Verified date: Mar 30, 2020
Observation date: Mar 24, 2020
Submitted by: MimiDew
Region: Texas, United States, Wood County
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Mar 27, 2020
Observation date: Mar 19, 2020
Submitted by: choyt
Region: Brewster County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Mar 20, 2020
Observation date: Mar 07, 2020
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Mar 10, 2020
Observation date: Oct 05, 2019
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Nov 24, 2019
Observation date: Oct 07, 2019
Submitted by: WINGSaloftinKS
Region: Douglas County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Oct 08, 2019
Observation date: Aug 05, 2019
Submitted by: eddysfo
Region: Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 05, 2019
Observation date: Sep 28, 2019
Submitted by: Rgilson
Region: Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Oct 03, 2019
Observation date: Sep 28, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Sep 29, 2019
Observation date: Sep 11, 2019
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: La Salle Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 16, 2019
Observation date: Aug 12, 2019
Submitted by: Raul Delgado
Region: Texas, United States, Webb County
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Aug 15, 2019
Observation date: Aug 03, 2019
Submitted by: Cactuswren1976
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 09, 2019
Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: tnjbodker
Region: Wilson County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: dbruce
Verified date: Aug 06, 2019
Observation date: Jul 13, 2018
Submitted by: jsm20384
Region: Barry County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Aug 08, 2018
Submitted by: Darrin Frye
Region: Platte County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
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