Attributes of Limenitis arthemis
Red-spotted Purple or White Admiral
Limenitis arthemis (Drury, 1773)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Limenitidinae
Identification: These two very different forms had once been considered separate species. WHITE ADMIRAL: Upperside is black with broad white median bands on both wings; hindwing has a marginal row of blue dashes and a submarginal row of red dots. Underside is reddish-brown with white median bands as on the upperside. RED-SPOTTED PURPLE: Upperside is blue to blue-green with much iridescence on the outer part of the hindwing. Underside is dark brown. Forewing has 2 red-orange bars near the base of the leading edge; hindwing has 3 red-orange spots near the base and a submarginal row of red-orange spots. The two forms hybridize where their ranges overlap, creating various intermediate forms which may be found in or near the overlap zone.
Wing Span: 2 1/4 - 4 inches (5.7 - 10.1 cm).
Life History: Males perch 3 feet or more above the ground on trees and tall bushes and rarely patrol for females. Eggs are laid singly on tips of host plant leaves; caterpillars eat leaves. Third-stage caterpillars hibernate.
Flight: Two broods from April-October.
Caterpillar Hosts: Leaves of many species of trees and shrubs including wild cherry (Prunus), aspen, poplar, cottonwood (Populus), oaks (Quercus), hawthorn (Crataegus), deerberry (Vaccinium stamineum), birch (Betula), willows (Salix), basswood (Tilia), and shadbush (Amelanchier).
Adult Food: Sap flows, rotting fruit, carrion, dung, and occasionally nectar from small white flowers including spiraea, privet, and viburnum. White Admirals also sip aphid honeydew.
Habitat: The White Admiral form is usually found in the north in deciduous broad-leaf or mixed evergreen forests dominated by aspen or birch. The Red-Spotted Purple form is usually found further south than the White Admiral, in deciduous or mixed forests, moist uplands, valley bottoms, and coastal plains.
Range: Alaska and subarctic Canada southeast of the Rocky Mountains to central Texas; east to New England and central Florida. Isolated populations in Arizona, New Mexico, and west Texas south into Mexico. The White Admiral form usually occurs north of a line through north central New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Minnesota. The Red-spotted Purple form is usually found south of this line. Much hybridization occurs where these forms meet. Comments: The Red-spotted Purple is a mimic of the poisonous Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor).
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 |
Verified Date |
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April 20, 2013 | Terry W. Johnson | Monroe County, Georgia, United States | May 13, 2013 | Details |
| April 15, 2013 | jomarlin | Marion County, Florida, United States | April 24, 2013 | Details | |
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April 14, 2013 | AnnaLauren | Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, United States | April 23, 2013 | Details |
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October 20, 2012 | Ken Cheeks | Richmond County, Georgia, United States | January 30, 2013 | Details |
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June 19, 2005 | curtis.lehman | Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, United States | December 08, 2012 | Details |
| September 17, 1984 | legacy.reporter (O Shields-R Wells) | Mohave County, Arizona, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| March 22, 1994 | legacy.reporter (S. M. Nelson) | La Paz County, Arizona, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| March 31, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 07, 2012 | legacy.reporter (Kazuo Inagaki) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 08, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 12, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Dallas County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 13, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Shelby County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 13, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Jefferson County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 14, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 15, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 21, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Jefferson County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 28, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Calhoun County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| April 28, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 05, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Lawrence County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 06, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 11, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | DeKalb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 12, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | DeKalb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 05, 2012 | legacy.reporter (Kazuo Inagaki) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 19, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 19, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 20, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Jefferson County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 28, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 26, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 27, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| May 28, 2012 | legacy.reporter (Paulette Haywood Ogard) | Shelby County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 02, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 02, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 02, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Hale County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 03, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 03, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 09, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 15, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 17, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 23, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 24, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| June 24, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| July 27, 2012 | legacy.reporter (Paulette Ogard and Sara Bright) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| July 08, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Perry County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 05, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Colbert County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 11, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Baldwin County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 20, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Baldwin County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 12, 2012 | legacy.reporter (Kazuo Inagaki) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 25, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 25, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Cleburne County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 26, 2012 | vitaly charny (Vitaly Charny) | Bibb County, Alabama, United States | December 01, 2012 | Details |







