Clouded Sulphur
Colias philodice Godart, 1819
Family: Pieridae
Subfamily: Coliadinae
Identification: Upper surface of male wings bright, clear yellow with solid black edging; lower side of forewing with some dark submarginal spots; hindwing with silver cell spot rimmed with orange-pink, usually doubled. Female has 2 forms: yellow form with uneven black edging enclosing yellow spots, and a white form which is greenish-white rather than yellow. Spring and fall forms are smaller and less conspicuously marked.
Wing Span: 1 1/2 - 2 3/4 inches (3.8 - 7 cm).
Life History: Eggs laid singly on host; caterpillars eat leaves. Hibernation is by third-stage caterpillars.
Flight: Three flights in the north from May-October, 4-5 in the south from March-November.
Caterpillar Hosts: Plants in the pea family (Fabaceae) including alfalfa (Medicago sativa), white clover (Trifolium repens), and pea (Pisum sativum).
Adult Food: Flower nectar of many plants.
Habitat: Many different open areas including fields, lawns, alfalfa and clover fields, road edges, meadows.
Range: Alaska south through central and southeast Canada, all of conterminous United states except much of California, south Texas, and most of Florida.
Conservation: Not required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: Not reported.
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 289 - 312 of 13106 verified sightings
Observation date: Sep 17, 2022
Submitted by: Sometimes
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 17, 2022
Observation date: Sep 14, 2022
Submitted by: gjkoppel
Region: York County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 17, 2022
Observation date: Sep 07, 2022
Submitted by: eroutside
Region: Prince Edward Island, Canada
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Sep 13, 2022
Observation date: Aug 22, 2022
Submitted by: RStankiewicz
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 13, 2022
Observation date: Sep 08, 2022
Submitted by: Sometimes
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 13, 2022
Observation date: Aug 23, 2022
Submitted by: RStankiewicz
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 13, 2022
Observation date: Sep 07, 2022
Submitted by: mtobin11
Region: Lake County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 11, 2022
Observation date: Sep 03, 2020
Submitted by: jrmbutterfly
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 10, 2022
Observation date: Aug 17, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Wood
Region: Boone County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 09, 2022
Observation date: Aug 04, 2021
Submitted by: jrmbutterfly
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 07, 2022
Observation date: Sep 05, 2022
Submitted by: Janet Ruth
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Sep 07, 2022
Observation date: Jul 26, 2022
Submitted by: commentator
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 06, 2022
Observation date: Aug 31, 2022
Submitted by: mtobin11
Region: Lake County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 04, 2022
Observation date: Sep 03, 2022
Submitted by: Bombyx-Aurelia
Region: Quebec, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Sep 04, 2022
Observation date: Aug 28, 2022
Submitted by: Marquy275
Region: Wayne County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: elsner
Verified date: Sep 01, 2022
Observation date: Aug 10, 2022
Submitted by: mjchilds
Region: Macomb County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: elsner
Verified date: Sep 01, 2022
Observation date: Aug 30, 2022
Submitted by: rocksnstars
Region: Oxford County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 31, 2022
Observation date: Jul 06, 2022
Submitted by: Kzfisherman
Region: Grand Traverse County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 30, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2022
Submitted by: Terry Robinson
Region: Oxford County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 24, 2022
Observation date: Oct 30, 2021
Submitted by: PONYRCR
Region: Hidalgo County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 23, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2022
Submitted by: Christine Stanke
Region: Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Aug 22, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2022
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 22, 2022
Observation date: Aug 21, 2022
Submitted by: KSkrehot
Region: Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 21, 2022
Observation date: Aug 19, 2022
Submitted by: Jim Lowe
Region: Tompkins County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Aug 20, 2022
- ‹ previous
- 13 of 547
- next ›