Common Wood-Nymph
Cercyonis pegala (Fabricius, 1775)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Satyrinae
Identification: Geographically variable. Wings are brown. Upperside of forewing has 2 large yellow-ringed eyespots. Lowerside of hindwing has a variable number of small eyespots. Southern and coastal butterflies are larger and have a yellow or yellow-orange patch on the outer part of the forewing. Inland butterflies are smaller and have the yellow forewing patch reduced or absent.
Wing Span: 1 3/4 - 3 inches (4.5 - 7.6 cm).
Life History: Males patrol for females with a dipping flight through the vegetation. In late summer, females lay eggs singly on host plant leaves. Caterpillars hatch but do not feed, instead hibernating until spring.
Flight: One brood from late May-October. Females emerge later than males.
Caterpillar Hosts: Purpletop (Tridens flavus) and other grasses.
Adult Food: Rotting fruit, flower nectar.
Habitat: Large, sunny, grassy areas including prairies, open meadows, bogs, and old fields.
Range: Southern Canada and the continental United States except for most of the Southwest and Texas, southern peninsular Florida, and northern Maine.
Conservation: Isolated populations in Great Basin wetlands may be of 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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 49 - 72 of 8010 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 03, 2023
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 04, 2023
Observation date: Jul 03, 2023
Submitted by: dlister
Region: Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 04, 2023
Observation date: Jun 28, 2023
Submitted by: Pheasantboy77
Region: Lyon County, Minnesota, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 01, 2023
Observation date: Jun 23, 2023
Submitted by: hiker96
Region: Yakima County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Jun 27, 2023
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: CheddahCurt
Region: Alberta, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: May 01, 2023
Observation date: Jun 08, 2022
Submitted by: chherrmann
Region: Dare County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Mar 25, 2023
Observation date: Jul 10, 2016
Submitted by: Rwolff2006
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Feb 15, 2023
Observation date: Aug 20, 2022
Submitted by: aarongunnar
Region: Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Feb 07, 2023
Observation date: Jul 06, 2020
Submitted by: hockeybruce7
Region: Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Feb 04, 2023
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: Pheasantboy77
Region: Gallatin County, Montana, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jan 18, 2023
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: Pheasantboy77
Region: Carter County, Montana, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jan 17, 2023
Observation date: Jul 06, 2021
Submitted by: flyinganvil
Region: Benton County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jan 02, 2023
Observation date: Aug 07, 2022
Submitted by: NikkiM
Region: Carbon County, Montana, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jan 02, 2023
Observation date: Aug 25, 2022
Submitted by: lisagorn
Region: Otsego County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Dec 02, 2022
Observation date: Jul 31, 2022
Submitted by: BeaLaporte
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Oct 23, 2022
Observation date: Sep 01, 2022
Submitted by: jrtindall
Region: Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: Allen B
Verified date: Oct 12, 2022
Observation date: Oct 01, 2022
Submitted by: billd
Region: Blaine County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Oct 06, 2022
Observation date: Sep 16, 2022
Submitted by: jrtindall
Region: Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: Allen B
Verified date: Oct 03, 2022
Observation date: Aug 25, 2022
Submitted by: Team-Chick
Region: Newport News, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Sep 27, 2022
Observation date: Sep 01, 2019
Submitted by: LonnieMiller
Region: Henry County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 24, 2022
Observation date: Jul 06, 2018
Submitted by: J Rachwalski
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 23, 2022
Observation date: Aug 03, 2018
Submitted by: LunaLT
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 23, 2022
Observation date: Jul 03, 2019
Submitted by: Claude Rioux
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 14, 2022
Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: Liz Osborn
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 13, 2022
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