Red - spotted Purple - Basilarchia astyanax |
| Size | 3 - 3½" |
| Egg | Compressed oval. |
| Caterpillar | Cream colored with dark mottling. Two hair bristles behind head. |
| Host / Food | Papaw |
| Broods | 3 broods |
| Habitat | Open woodlands, forest edges, meadows, riversides, shorelines, roadsides. |
| Range | Dakotas and NE Colorado east to New England, south to central Florida, and west to Arizona and Mexico. |
| Notes | In our yard at least the Red-Spotted Purple is the bravest butterfly we see. They are very slow to fly away when you near them and have a habit of landing on our dog. This butterfly is also a mimic, it copies the Pipevine Swallowtail which is distasteful to birds. |
