Attributes of Danaus gilippus
Queen
Danaus gilippus (Cramer, 1776)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Danainae
Identification: Upperside is chestnut brown; black borders of forewings have 2 rows of white spots; white spots are scattered at the forewing apex. Underside of hindwing has black veins; black borders of both wings have 2 rows of white spots. Upperside of male hindwing has a black scale patch. Very similar to the Soldier (Danaus eresimus), but is more brown and has less defined wing veins on the upperside. Underside hindwing lacks band of pale spots present in the Soldier. Queens in the southwest (and sometimes in the southeast) have pale veins on the upperside of the hindwings, which are lacking in the Soldier.
Wing Span: 2 5/8 - 3 7/8 inches (6.7 - 9.8 cm).
Life History: To find females, males patrol all day. Females lay eggs singly on leaves, stems, and flower buds; which the caterpillars eat. Adults roost communally.
Flight: All year in Florida and South Texas, July-August in the north.
Caterpillar Hosts: Milkweeds and milkweed vines. Some of the milkweeds contain cardiac glycosides which are stored in the bodies of both the caterpillar and adult. These poisons are distasteful and emetic to birds and other vertebrate predators. After tasting a Queen, a predator might associate the bright warning colors of the adult or caterpillar with an unpleasant meal, and avoid Queens in the future.
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers including milkweeds, fogfruit, and shepherd's needle.
Habitat: Open, sunny areas including fields, deserts, roadsides, pastures, dunes, washes, and waterways.
Range: Resident in extreme southern United States south through tropical lowlands of the West Indies and Central America to Argentina. Regular stray and sometime colonist in the plains; rarely along Atlantic coastal plain to Massachusetts and the Great Plains. Comments: The Florida Viceroy (Limenitis archippus floridensis) is also inedible and mimics the Queen.
Conservation: Not usually 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.
Taxonomy Notes:
The map below displays all verified sighting records in the BAMONA database for this species. Each record is indicated with a yellow dot. The orange dots on the map provide access to information about the 400 most recently verified sightings of this species. In some instances, there are several records at the same location. Use the table view to access these records.
Instructions: Click on the map and move your mouse to pan.
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The fifty most recently verified sightings are below. See more recently verified sightings of all species.
| Observation Date | Submitter | Region |
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July 29, 2012 | vonderheyden | Quintana Roo, Mexico | May 22, 2013 | Details |
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January 20, 2013 | Naseem Reza | Volusia County, Florida, United States | April 17, 2013 | Details |
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March 09, 2013 | mrcnaturally | Collier County, Florida, United States | March 27, 2013 | Details |
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July 18, 1971 | stomlins701 | Bexar County, Texas, United States | March 14, 2013 | Details |
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January 22, 2013 | Sandra Cooper | Texas, Starr County, United States | February 22, 2013 | Details |
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January 03, 2013 | ccbelknap | Lee County, Florida, United States | February 11, 2013 | Details |
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November 11, 2012 | Roy Brown | Wakulla County, Florida, United States | February 11, 2013 | Details |
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February 02, 2013 | TSims | Lee County, Florida, United States | February 11, 2013 | Details |
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December 04, 2012 | Roy Brown | Dougherty County, Georgia, United States | January 30, 2013 | Details |
| October 15, 2012 | CA Ivy | Sebastian County, Arkansas, United States | January 27, 2013 | Details | |
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December 21, 2012 | Cheryl Jennings | Pima County, Arizona, United States | January 08, 2013 | Details |
| October 12, 2012 | lorispencer (Charles Mills) | Howard County, Arkansas, United States | January 06, 2013 | Details | |
| October 04, 2012 | CA Ivy | Sebastian County, Arkansas, United States | January 03, 2013 | Details | |
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November 13, 2012 | swittwa | Sarasota County, Florida, United States | January 02, 2013 | Details |
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December 10, 2012 | opiliones | Mohave County, Arizona, United States | December 13, 2012 | Details |
| December 10, 2012 | dsillyp | Collier County, Florida, United States | December 11, 2012 | Details | |
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November 08, 2011 | donduck | Palm Beach County, Florida, United States | December 07, 2012 | Details |
| November 22, 2012 | toddewen | Hillsborough County, Florida, United States | December 07, 2012 | Details | |
| September 07, 1983 | legacy.reporter (George T. Austin) | Elko County, Nevada, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 18, 1983 | legacy.reporter (George T. Austin) | Esmeralda County, Nevada, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 01, 1987 | legacy.reporter (John G. Pasko) | Douglas County, Nevada, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| July 30, 1988 | legacy.reporter (George T. Austin) | Storey County, Nevada, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 26, 1988 | legacy.reporter (George T. Austin) | Washoe County, Nevada, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| September 14, 2012 | Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport) | Kern County, California, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 17, 1994 | legacy.reporter (Lauritz Muehlbach) | Yavapai County, Arizona, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| December 11, 2000 | legacy.reporter (Alex Grkovich) | Mohave County, Arizona, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| December 15, 2000 | legacy.reporter (Alex Grkovich) | Mohave County, Arizona, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
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October 13, 2012 | aahewetson | Jack County, Texas, United States | November 25, 2012 | Details |
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November 22, 2012 | Maxintaft | Texas, San Patricio County, United States | November 25, 2012 | Details |
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November 22, 2012 | colleen mccarthy-evans | Santa Barbara County, California, United States | November 22, 2012 | Details |
| October 07, 2012 | MrDibbons | Baja California Sur, Mexico | November 20, 2012 | Details | |
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November 09, 2012 | cedarcyclist | Texas, United States, Williamson County | November 19, 2012 | Details |
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September 23, 2012 | Jeff Trahan | De Soto Parish, Louisiana, United States | November 14, 2012 | Details |
| October 04, 2012 | rseidler | Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States | November 14, 2012 | Details | |
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October 22, 2012 | Jeff Trahan | Caddo Parish, Louisiana, United States | November 14, 2012 | Details |
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November 03, 2012 | rseidler | Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, United States | November 13, 2012 | Details |
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October 13, 2012 | JimConrad | Texas, United States, Uvalde County | November 12, 2012 | Details |
| October 29, 2012 | whbauer | Bexar County, Texas, United States | November 10, 2012 | Details | |
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October 21, 2012 | JimConrad | Texas, United States, Uvalde County | November 10, 2012 | Details |
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October 01, 2012 | guy_incognito | Collier County, Florida, United States | November 07, 2012 | Details |
| September 28, 2012 | CA Ivy | Sebastian County, Arkansas, United States | October 21, 2012 | Details | |
| October 16, 2012 | LowRoller | Hendry County, Florida, United States | October 18, 2012 | Details | |
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September 07, 2012 | Jeff Trahan | Cochise County, Arizona, United States | September 18, 2012 | Details |
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September 09, 2012 | docdemory | Orange County, California, United States | September 11, 2012 | Details |
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August 19, 2012 | gibaro44 | Texas, United States, Wilson County | September 10, 2012 | Details |
| August 26, 2012 | DeeinTx | Texas, United States, Williamson County | September 05, 2012 | Details | |
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September 01, 2012 | lefevers | Otero County, New Mexico, United States | September 02, 2012 | Details |
| August 25, 2012 | lefevers | Caddo Parish, Louisiana, United States | August 29, 2012 | Details | |
| June 06, 2012 | bayouchic | Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States | August 12, 2012 | Details | |
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July 25, 2009 | jeffmci9 | Texas, Travis County, United States | August 08, 2012 | Details |
























