Butterflies and Moths of North America

collecting and sharing data about Lepidoptera

Vesta or Graphic Crescent
Phyciodes graphica (R. Felder, 1869)


Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae
Identification: Orange above with markings of fine black lines. Below, forewing has a series of postmedian and submarginal orange circles on a dark background.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 1/2 inches (2.2 - 3.8 cm).
Life History: Males patrol for females all day in low areas. Females lay eggs in clumps on leaves of host plant; caterpillars eat leaves.
Flight: Many broods from April-September in the north, February-December in South Texas, all year in Mexico.
Caterpillar Hosts: Hairy tubetongue (Siphonoglossa pilosella) in the acanthus family.
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Thorn and mesquite woodlands, desert, prairie, road edges, dry streambeds.
Range: Guatemala north through Mexico to southeast Arizona and central Texas. Temporary colonist to Arkansas, Colorado, and Nebraska.
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: NULL
Taxonomy Notes: Includes Phyciodes vesta.
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