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.
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 436 verified sightings
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Watauga County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Notes on the Butterflies of North Carolina Database)
Verified date: May 01, 2011
Observation date: Aug 31, 2011
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Pete Spino)
Region: San Diego County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: May 01, 2011
Observation date: Aug 13, 2008
Submitted by: stevecary (Dave Ferguson)
Region: Valencia County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Feb 19, 2011
Observation date: Nov 04, 2006
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Feb 05, 2011
Observation date: Aug 07, 1994
Submitted by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2011
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: Wanda Smith (Wanda Smith)
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: Wanda Smith (Wanda Smith)
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: Wanda Smith (Wanda Smith)
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: Wanda Smith (Wanda Smith)
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: BAMONA (David Spicer)
Region: Cameron County, Texas, United States
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: Oct 21, 2009
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Derb Carter)
Region: New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: harrylegrand (Harry LeGrand)
Verified date: Aug 03, 2010
Observation date: Oct 19, 2006
Submitted by: Gary Jue (Gary Jue)
Region: Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba (John Saba)
Verified date: Jun 04, 2009
Observation date: Jun 16, 2005
Submitted by: Wanda Smith (Wanda Smith)
Region: Harris County, Texas, United States
Verified by: kmortensen (Kelly Mortensen)
Verified date: May 18, 2009
Observation date: Aug 31, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Selman, Sue)
Region: Harper County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Nelson, John M.)
Verified date: Apr 03, 2009
Observation date: Nov 02, 2008
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Schwinn, Sandy)
Region: Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Nelson, John M.)
Verified date: Apr 03, 2009
Observation date: Sep 24, 2005
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Robert A. Behrstock)
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (The Lepidopterists' Society Season Summary)
Verified date: Jan 28, 2009
Observation date: Sep 20, 2003
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Priscilla & Hank Brodkin)
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (The Lepidopterists' Society Season Summary)
Verified date: Jan 28, 2009
Observation date: Jun 10, 2001
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Marcus Lindbergh)
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (The Lepidopterists' Society Season Summary)
Verified date: Jan 28, 2009
Observation date: Nov 18, 2005
Submitted by: John Saba (John Saba)
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (The Lepidopterists' Society Season Summary)
Verified date: Jan 28, 2009
Observation date: Dec 06, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Steve Alexander)
Region: Orange County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (K dDavenport)
Verified date: Jan 23, 2008
Observation date: Jul 24, 2004
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Brian Banker)
Region: San Diego County, California, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Brian Banker)
Verified date: Jan 07, 2008
Observation date: Oct 14, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Mike Overton, Paul Opler)
Region: Tamaulipas, Mexico
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Mike Overton)
Verified date: Oct 01, 2007
Observation date: Oct 15, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Mike Overton, Paul Opler)
Region: San Luis Potosi, Mexico
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Mike Overton)
Verified date: Oct 01, 2007
Observation date: Oct 16, 2006
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Mike Overton, Paul Opler)
Region: Tamaulipas, Mexico
Verified by: legacy.verifier (Mike Overton)
Verified date: Oct 01, 2007
- ‹ previous
- 13 of 19
- next ›