Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta (Linnaeus, 1758)    Synonyms: American Red Admiral, Hodges #4437.
Kingdom Animalia   >   Phylum Arthropoda   >   Class Insecta   >   Order Lepidoptera   >   Family Nymphalidae   >   Genus Vanessa   

Status:

Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) is a very widespread and familiar butterfly species, ranging across North America, and also found south into Central America, and throughout much of Europe, northern Africa, and temperate Asia. The distinctive pattern of this butterfly, with a dark upperside with white spots on the wingtips, and bright reddish-orange bands through the fore- and hindwings make identification very straightforward. This butterfly is a strong migrant, and may migrate south in huge numbers in fall. Subsequent generations appear to return to breed in the spring (Butterflies of Maryland: A Biological Summary and Checklist by Lynn Davidson & Richard Smith).

Relationships:

This species primarily uses nettles (Urtica spp.) as larval host plants.

There are 1,699 records in the project database.

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Red Admiral in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (9/13/2020). (c) Matthew Beziat, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Matthew Beziat. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Harford Co., Maryland (6/24/2015). Photo by Mark Johnson. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral near Tampa Bay, Florida (4/7/2011). Photo by Dan Irizarry. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Washington Co., Maryland (6/24/2018). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral at the Jemicy Upper Schoold in Baltimore Co., Maryland (7/29/2015). Photo by P. Merz. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral on Assateague Island in Worcester Co., Maryland (11/12/2016). Photo by Bill Hubick. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Worcester Co., Maryland (6/30/2014). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Baltimore Co., Maryland (9/10/2014). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Howard Co., Maryland (7/31/2015). Photo by Kevin Heffernan. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Baltimore City, Maryland (9/20/2007). Photo by Thomas Wilson. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral near Tampa Bay, Florida (4/7/2011). Photo by Dan Irizarry. (MBP list)

Red Admiral in Worcester Co., Maryland (7/4/2022). (c) Judy Gallagher, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Judy Gallagher. (MBP list)

Red Admiral in Dorchester Co., Maryland (10/9/2022). (c) Ron Wertz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA). Photo by Ron Wertz via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Allegany Co., Maryland (7/5/2019). Photo by Mark Eanes. (MBP list)

Red Admiral in Howard Co., Maryland (6/25/2015). (c) Jim, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by Jim via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Garrett Co., Maryland (5/2/2020). Photo by William Blauvelt. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Garrett Co., Maryland (7/27/2015). Photo by Kimberly Booth. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Carroll Co., Maryland (5/11/2012). Photo by Frode Jacobsen. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral caterpillar in Montgomery Co., Maryland (5/22/2019). Photo by Tim Friedlander. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Frederick Co., Maryland (9/4/2000). Photo by Mark Etheridge. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral larval leaf nest in Montgomery Co., Maryland (5/22/2019). Photo by Tim Friedlander. (MBP list)

Red Admiral in Harford Co., Maryland (7/9/2017). Photo by Josh Emm. (MBP list)

A Red Admiral in Montgomery Co., Maryland (7/9/2019). Determined by Ken Allison/BugGuide. Photo by Robert Ferraro. (MBP list)

Red Admiral in Montgomery Co., Maryland (8/13/2023). (c) dianenielson, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC). Photo by dianenielson via iNaturalist. (MBP list)

Red Admiral chrysalis in Kent Co., Maryland (6/8/2019). Photo by Rick Borchelt. (MBP list)


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