Tropical Buckeye
Junonia evarete (Cramer, 1779)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae
Identification: Upperside is brown; wide forewing band is white diffused with brown or orange; large eyespot is edged with brown internally. Lower eyespot on forewing and upper eyespot on hindwing are about the same size. Underside of hindwing is brown; median band is fairly straight. Form nigrosuffusa is very dark brown; forewing band is dark orange or lacking.
Wing Span: 1 3/4 - 2 1/4 inches (4.5 - 5.7 cm).
Life History: Males perch all day on flat-topped vegetation or on the ground to watch for receptive females. Eggs are laid singly on the host plant; caterpillars are solitary and eat leaves.
Flight: Three to four broods from March-October, adults overwinter from October-March.
Caterpillar Hosts: Stemodia, lippia, ruellia, and porterweed.
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Open tropical lowlands including fields, brushlands, sandy islands.
Range: Southern New Mexico, southern Arizona, South Texas, and southern Florida south through the West Indies, Mexico, and Central America to Argentina. Rare wanderer to southeastern California, southeastern Colorado, and central Florida.
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.
Comments: The eyespots are used to frighten predators.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 213 verified sightings
Observation date: May 12, 2025
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: May 19, 2025
Observation date: Feb 13, 2012
Submitted by: Gordon Phillips
Region: Monroe County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Mar 18, 2025
Observation date: Mar 01, 2025
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Mar 02, 2025
Observation date: Feb 13, 2025
Submitted by: hiker96
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 23, 2025
Observation date: Oct 22, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Oct 24, 2024
Observation date: Sep 04, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Sep 19, 2024
Observation date: Aug 07, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Aug 27, 2024
Observation date: Jan 15, 2022
Submitted by: dvollmar
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 08, 2024
Observation date: Jul 02, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Aug 02, 2024
Observation date: Jun 28, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Jul 27, 2024
Observation date: May 03, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: May 30, 2024
Observation date: Jun 21, 2022
Submitted by: islandgyal
Region: The Bahamas
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Apr 10, 2024
Observation date: Jan 06, 2005
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region:
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Mar 04, 2024
Observation date: Nov 15, 2023
Submitted by: Janet Ruth
Region: Jamaica
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Dec 12, 2023
Observation date: Aug 23, 2019
Submitted by: pbridwell
Region: Grand County, Utah, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 23, 2023
Observation date: Aug 27, 2017
Submitted by: baed
Region: Washington County, Utah, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 23, 2023
Observation date: Aug 12, 2023
Submitted by: cklindsey
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 19, 2023
Observation date: Aug 12, 2023
Submitted by: cklindsey
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 19, 2023
Observation date: Jun 27, 2023
Submitted by: ridgeboy
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jun 28, 2023
Observation date: May 15, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Jun 12, 2023
Observation date: May 15, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Jun 12, 2023
Observation date: May 14, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Jun 12, 2023
Observation date: Jan 31, 2023
Submitted by: mtobin11
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Mar 15, 2023
Observation date: Oct 17, 2019
Submitted by: Markus M
Region: Jalisco, Mexico
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Feb 25, 2023
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