Gray Comma Polygonia progne (Cramer, 1775)

Family: Nymphalidae

Subfamily: Nymphalinae

Identification: Upperside is bright orange-brown; summer form has hindwing with a wide dark border, winter form has the border covering only about 1/4 of the wing; both enclosing a few small yellow spots. Underside is charcoal gray with fine dark striations; forewing with 3-4 light chevrons in a dark border. Silver mark in center of hindwing is small, slender, and L-shaped.

Wing Span: 1 5/8 - 2 /12 inches (4.4 - 6.3 cm).

Life History: In midafternoon, males perch on trees or shrubs at the edges of clearings to wait for females. Eggs are laid singly on leaves of host plants; the caterpillars feed underneath. Adults overwinter.

Flight: Two flights from hibernation, mates, and lays eggs which develop into the summer generation. Summer adults fly from June-August, laying eggs of the winter generation which appears in October and then hibernates.

Caterpillar Hosts: Gooseberries (Ribes) and azalea (Rhododendron).

Adult Food: Sap; rarely flower nectar.

Habitat: Along dirt roads, along streamsides, and within clearings in rich deciduous or confierous woods, in aspen parks, yards, and gardens. Often in hilly terrain or canyons.

Range: Northwest Territories and British Columbia south along Pacific coast to central California, southeast through Montana, Utah, Colorado, and the Dakotas to eastern Nebraska, central Kansas, and central Arkansas; east through southern Canada and the northern United States to Maine and the Maritimes; south in the Appalachians to North Carolina.

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. Note: The Gray Comma includes Polygonia oreas and its subspecies silenus and nigrozephyrus. These were previously treated as a separate species.

Comments: NULL

BAMONA Shop

Check out our Classic BAMONA Logo Shirts and cozy Native Plants Hoodies!

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 241 - 264 of 1113 verified sightings

Filter by Region

Observation date: Jul 05, 2003

Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Pilcher, Roy)

Region: Rutland County, Vermont, United States

Verified by: legacy.verifier (Pilcher, Roy)

Verified date: May 01, 2011

Butterflies and Moths of North America

collecting and sharing data about Lepidoptera

Please donate!

Advertise with us!

Verified Sightings

Advertisement

Gray Comma
Polygonia progne (Cramer, 1775)