Types of Butterflies
Each year there are more and more people searching for different types of butterflies. Butterfly watching is becoming almost as prevalent as bird watching. Many different lodgings plant butterfly gardens to attract guests or offer butterfly watching hikes on nature paths.
There are six different types of butterflies in the United States. Here is a little information about each type:
The Hesperiidae type of butterflies are also known as skippers. There are 3500 different kinds of skippers worldwide. They are a small butterfly, brownish in color. Among the different types of butterflies in the family of skippers are spread-wing, folded-wing, skipperlings, sootwings, long tails, cloudy wings, duskywings, and flats. For the most part skippers feed on oak, legumes, and mallow, but there are also skippers that feed on grass and who have become known as grass skippers. Skippers are prevalent in warmer climates such as California.
The Lycaenidae family of butterflies is also known as gossamer-wings. There are 4740 species of this kind of butterfly worldwide. These types of butterflies are small and it’s not easy to identify the various species. Among the different kinds are coppers, elfins, hairstreaks, and blues. One of the most interesting things about the gossamer-wings is that they develop a mutually-benefiting relationship with ants. This happens in the caterpillar stage. The butterflies give the ants sugary food through their glands and in return the ants will defend the caterpillars from predators. In some cases, this has not turned out well, as some gossamer-wings have been known to eat the larvae of ants.
The largest of the types of butterflies is the Nymphalidae family. These are also known as brush-footed butterflies. There are around 6000 species worldwide. They are particularly difficult to identify as many have orange wings and similar wing patterns. Among the different brush-footed butterflies are fritillaries, checkerspots, tortoiseshells, commas, ladies and crescents. Their defining characteristic is that the front two feet are small and not functional but are brush-like in appearance. Their other two pair of legs are functional. Many of the butterflies most recognized are in the brush-footed family, including the Monarch, Mourning Cloak, and Painted Lady.
The Papilionidae family of butterflies is also know as the swallowtails. There are approximately 600 species in this family around the world. They have tails on their hindwings and usually have stripes that can be white, black or yellow.
Next is the Pieridae family of butterflies which consists of the whites and sulfurs. These butterflies are either white, yellow or orange. Dogfaces, Orangetips, Yellows and Marbles are in this category. The whites and sulphurs as caterpillars feed on people’s gardens, especially plants in the legume and crucifer families. One of the most popular types of butterflies in this group is the Cabbage White Butterfly.
The last of the types of butterflies is the Riodinidae family--these are known as metalmarks. There are close to 1250 species of this butterfly in the world. They only live in very warm climates. Like the gossamer-wings they also befriend ants for protection.