Orange-barred Sulphur
Phoebis philea (Linnaeus, 1763)
Family: Pieridae
Subfamily: Coliadinae
Identification: Upperside of male bright yellow-orange; forewing has red-orange bar and hindwing has red-orange outer margin. The two forms of the female, one off-white and the other yellow-orange, are much larger than the male. Both have upperside of forewing with solid black cell spot and a submarginal row of broken, angled black smudges. Outer half of hindwing of yellow form is red-orange.
Wing Span: 2 3/4 - 4 inches (7 - 10.2 cm).
Life History: Swift, high fliers. Females lay single eggs on leaves and flowers of host plants; caterpillars prefer to feed on the flowers. Development is continous in the wet season.
Flight: Two-three flights in Florida, one in northern range from mid-late summer.
Caterpillar Hosts: Cassia species in the pea family (Fabaceae).
Adult Food: Nectar from many different flowers.
Habitat: Open lowland sites such as gardens, forest edges, parks, road edges.
Range: Resident from Brazil north to peninsular Florida and the Keys. Irregular wanderer to south Texas; extremely rare vagrant in Colorado, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Connecticut.
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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 428 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: May 03, 2025
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: May 18, 2025
Observation date: Jul 25, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Apr 11, 2025
Observation date: Feb 01, 2025
Submitted by: Paul Prappas
Region: Petén, Guatemala
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Feb 21, 2025
Observation date: Oct 05, 2024
Submitted by: FRANK S.
Region: Hidalgo County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Feb 13, 2025
Observation date: Oct 12, 2024
Submitted by: jrmbutterfly
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 04, 2024
Observation date: Oct 13, 2024
Submitted by: jrmbutterfly
Region: Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 04, 2024
Observation date: Oct 12, 2024
Submitted by: jrmbutterfly
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 04, 2024
Observation date: Nov 19, 2024
Submitted by: marilynne
Region: Palm Beach County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Nov 20, 2024
Observation date: Sep 15, 2024
Submitted by: Zengolfer944
Region: Duval County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 15, 2024
Observation date: Sep 26, 2021
Submitted by: godibec
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 09, 2024
Observation date: Sep 17, 2023
Submitted by: dvollmar
Region: Broward County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 12, 2024
Observation date: Jun 10, 2023
Submitted by: Sheilabean
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: Aug 02, 2024
Observation date: May 07, 2024
Submitted by: Charlie Doggett
Region: Costa Rica
Verified by: Charlie Doggett
Verified date: May 29, 2024
Observation date: May 14, 2024
Submitted by: therapypetz
Region: Broward County, Florida, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 14, 2024
Observation date: Mar 13, 2024
Submitted by: fly-baby-fly
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Mar 14, 2024
Observation date: Feb 13, 2024
Submitted by: marilynne
Region: Palm Beach County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 21, 2024
Observation date: Feb 15, 2024
Submitted by: Joceb2005
Region: Collier County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 16, 2024
Observation date: Feb 09, 2024
Submitted by: jmgesell
Region: Sarasota County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Feb 10, 2024
Observation date: Dec 18, 2023
Submitted by: SteveHoller
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 20, 2023
Observation date: Aug 04, 2018
Submitted by: ridgeboy
Region: Polk County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 29, 2023
Observation date: Aug 05, 2023
Submitted by: shark57
Region: St. Johns County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 23, 2023
Observation date: Sep 04, 2006
Submitted by: Lunamothdog
Region: Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jul 12, 2023
Observation date: Jul 03, 2023
Submitted by: therapypetz
Region: Broward County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 05, 2023
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