Northwestern Fritillary
Speyeria hesperis (W.H. Edwards, 1864)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Heliconiinae
Identification: Quite variable. Upperside orange-brown, often darker at base, with black outer margins especially on forewing; male has black scales on veins. Underside of hindwing with basal disk or light brown orange-brown with pale submarginal band; spots silvered or unsilvered.
Wing Span: 2 - 2 3/4 inches (5 - 7 cm).
Life History: Males patrol during the day in open areas. Eggs are laid singly on leaf litter near host plant. Unfed first-stage caterpillars overwinter, emerging in spring to feed on leaves.
Flight: One flight from June-October, mainly July-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Violets.
Adult Food: Flower nectar including Gaillardia, rabbitbrush, purple mints, and shrub cinquefoil.
Habitat: Forest openings, meadows, and open hillsides.
Range: Western mountains from central western Alaska, Yukon, and Northwest Territories south to central California, Arizona, and New Mexico.
Conservation: Not usually of conservation concern. Subspecies elko Austin and hanseni Emmel and Emmel are of conservation concern because of their small ranges. The former may be threatened by invasive alien weeds including smooth brome and/or cheatgrass.
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
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 390 verified sightings
Observation date: Oct 13, 2017
Submitted by: Liz Osborn
Region: Kane County, Utah, United States
Verified by: RaisingButterfl...
Verified date: Feb 02, 2020
Observation date: Aug 21, 2019
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Feb 01, 2020
Observation date: Aug 02, 2019
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jan 30, 2020
Observation date: Jul 09, 2019
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jan 28, 2020
Observation date: Aug 06, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Dec 23, 2019
Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: Thomlinson
Region: Jefferson County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 05, 2019
Observation date: Jul 24, 2019
Submitted by: janders1
Region: Jefferson County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 04, 2019
Observation date: Jul 24, 2019
Submitted by: Christian.Nunes
Region: Las Animas County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 23, 2019
Observation date: Jul 05, 2019
Submitted by: topper72
Region: Los Alamos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Sep 03, 2019
Observation date: Jul 27, 2017
Submitted by: JulieLuetzelschwab
Region: Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 22, 2019
Observation date: Jul 28, 2019
Submitted by: pnesterenko
Region: El Paso County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: A_baldini
Verified date: Aug 04, 2019
Observation date: Jul 22, 2019
Submitted by: Reneerob17
Region: Torrance County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Jul 17, 2019
Submitted by: Cactuswren1976
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Jul 01, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Jackson County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 15, 2019
Observation date: Jul 04, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Josephine County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 14, 2019
Observation date: Jul 04, 2019
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: Josephine County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 14, 2019
Observation date: Jul 01, 2018
Submitted by: gasigr
Region: Crook County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Mar 03, 2019
Observation date: Jun 20, 2018
Submitted by: Benjamin Miller
Region: Coconino County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 06, 2019
Observation date: Jul 05, 2018
Submitted by: J_Martineau
Region: Garfield County, Utah, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jan 09, 2019
Observation date: Jul 05, 2018
Submitted by: Paul Prappas
Region: Alberta, Canada
Verified by: Norbert Kondla
Verified date: Nov 24, 2018
Observation date: Sep 04, 2018
Submitted by: plex1ppus
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Norbert Kondla
Verified date: Nov 24, 2018
Observation date: Aug 23, 2018
Submitted by: dbrudin
Region: Teller County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 27, 2018
Observation date: Jul 03, 2018
Submitted by: Bob Patton
Region: Cibola County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Oct 15, 2018
Observation date: Aug 04, 2018
Submitted by: Mapwing
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Oct 11, 2018
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