Great Spangled Fritillary
Speyeria cybele (Fabricius, 1775)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Heliconiinae
Identification: Large. Upperside of male tan to orange with black scales on forewing veins; female tawny, darker than male. Underside of hindwing with wide pale submarginal band and large silver spots.
Wing Span: 2 1/2 - 4 inches (6.3 - 10.1 cm).
Life History: Males patrol open areas for females. Eggs are laid in late summer on or near host violets. Newly-hatched caterpillars do not feed, but overwinter until spring, when they eat young violet leaves.
Flight: One brood from mid-June to mid-September.
Caterpillar Hosts: Various violet species (Viola).
Adult Food: Nectar from many species of flowers including milkweeds, thistles, ironweed, dogbane, mountain laurel, verbena, vetch, bergamot, red clover, joe-pye weed, and purple coneflower.
Habitat: Open, moist places including fields, valleys, pastures, right-of-ways, meadows, open woodland, prairies.
Range: Alberta east to Nova Scotia, south to central California, New Mexico, central Arkansas, and northern Georgia. Comments: The most common fritillary throughout most of the eastern United States.
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 73 - 96 of 8274 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 11, 2025
Submitted by: Tom Dudones
Region: Franklin County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 12, 2025
Observation date: Jul 11, 2025
Submitted by: Tom Dudones
Region: Franklin County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 12, 2025
Observation date: Jul 11, 2025
Submitted by: Tom Dudones
Region: Franklin County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 12, 2025
Observation date: Jul 11, 2025
Submitted by: R1johnston
Region: Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 11, 2025
Observation date: Jun 21, 2025
Submitted by: Bo
Region: McHenry County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 11, 2025
Observation date: Jun 27, 2025
Submitted by: Martin Neil UK
Region: Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jul 10, 2025
Observation date: Jul 07, 2025
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 09, 2025
Observation date: Jun 20, 2025
Submitted by: Daniel Morton
Region: Somerset County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 08, 2025
Observation date: Jun 29, 2025
Submitted by: Daniel Morton
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 08, 2025
Observation date: Jul 01, 2025
Submitted by: Daniel Morton
Region: Somerset County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 07, 2025
Observation date: Jul 05, 2025
Submitted by: maryjanzen
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 07, 2025
Observation date: Jul 05, 2025
Submitted by: gjkoppel
Region: Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 07, 2025
Observation date: Jul 06, 2025
Submitted by: Debbiejo
Region: Chelan County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Jul 06, 2025
Observation date: Jul 05, 2025
Submitted by: drifter423
Region: New Brunswick, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 05, 2025
Observation date: Jul 03, 2025
Submitted by: MSEmbeck
Region: Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 04, 2025
Observation date: Jun 28, 2025
Submitted by: maryjanzen
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 01, 2025
Observation date: Jun 24, 2025
Submitted by: jmgesell
Region: Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 01, 2025
Observation date: Jun 28, 2025
Submitted by: jwileyrains
Region: Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jun 28, 2025
Observation date: Jun 22, 2025
Submitted by: cp2023
Region: Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jun 24, 2025
Observation date: Jun 21, 2025
Submitted by: ButterBelle
Region: Knox County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Jun 22, 2025
Observation date: Jun 15, 2025
Submitted by: DandeIsaacson
Region: Jackson County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Jun 17, 2025
Observation date: Jun 16, 2025
Submitted by: prairiegardenlady
Region: Madison County, Iowa, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Jun 16, 2025
Observation date: Jun 15, 2025
Submitted by: Steven Wilson
Region: Nicholas County, West Virginia, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jun 16, 2025
Observation date: Jun 13, 2025
Submitted by: SteveMatadobra
Region: Transylvania County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Jun 13, 2025
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