Lorquin's admiral (''Limenitis lorquini'') is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises ...

in the

Nymphalinae The Nymphalinae are a subfamily of brush-footed butterflies (family Nymphalidae). Sometimes, the subfamilies Limenitidinae, and Biblidinae are included here as subordinate tribe(s), while the tribe Melitaeini is occasionally regarded as a distinc ...

subfamily. The butterfly is named after

Pierre Joseph Michel Lorquin Pierre Joseph Michel Lorquin (2 July 1797, Valenciennes – 8 February 1873, Paris) was a French entomologist who specialised in Coleoptera and Lepidoptera. In 1847/48 he collected for Charles Oberthur and Jean Baptiste Boisduval in Andalusia an ...

, a French naturalist who came to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

during the

Gold Rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

, and made important discoveries on the natural history of the terrain.

Description

The Lorquin's admiral has brown-black wings, each with a row of white spots across it. Its forewings have orange tips. Wingspan: 47 to 71 mm; females are generally larger than males.

Distribution and habitat

The Lorquin's admiral can mostly be found across the Upper Sonoran to the Canadian Zone, east to western

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

and

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and W ...

. Known areas include southern

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

(including

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...

, north of Emerald Lake), and Cypress Hills in southwestern

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North ...

as well as southwestern

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. The butterfly resides mostly in forest edges, mountain canyons, parks, streamsides, fencerows, orchards, and groves of cottonwood and poplar. Usually the butterflies feed on California buckeye, yerba santa, privet, bird droppings, and dung. They are extremely territorial and will attack any intruders into their habitat, including large birds.

Larvae

Larvae are usually yellow with a patch of white on the back. Eggs are laid near or on the tips of leaves. Common trees that the larvae feed on include

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist ...

(''Salix''), poplar,

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus '' Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet '' Prunus avium'' and the sour '' Prunus cerasus''. The ...

(''Prunus''), cottonwood (''Populus''), and an assortment of orchard trees, including cherry, apple, and plum.

Flight season

The Lorquin's admiral usually flies around April to October, though it depends on the region. Butterflies in northern areas tend to have one brood a year (usually between June and August) whereas southern butterflies (mainly in California) tend to have multiple broods.

Similar species

California sister butterfly ''Adelpha californica'', the California sister, is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. They are common in California, but can also be found in western Nevada and Oregon, as well as in northern Baja California. The upper surfaces of ...

(''Adelpha bredowii californica'') * Weidemeyer's admiral (''L. weidemeyerii'') * White admiral (''L. arthemis'')

References

External links

Raising ButterfliesLorquin's Admiral
Butterflies of Canada
Butterflies and Moths of North America - Limenitis lorquini
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2533699 Limenitis Butterflies of North America Nymphalidae of South America Butterflies described in 1852