Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Northern White Skipper. Gallery Prev Next Baldy Cr Rd, Jackson Co, June 28 (new county record) - male Northern White Skipper Heliopetes ericetorum Size: Up to 2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above pearly-white, with "chains" of dark brown chevrons along wing margins, light on males, bolder and more extensive on females . Below white with irregular vague bands of light tan, pinkish brown or mustard. Similar species: No other similar species in Oregon. Host plant: Various species in the globemallow family. Habitat: Various habitats in arid areas including riverbanks, canyons, roadsides, lower elevation forest openings, weedy fields and alfalfa fields. Range: Primarily Columbia, Deschutes, Snake River and Owyhee river basins, but also recent records in southern Lake and Jackson counties. Season: Early May to early October Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Butterflies of Oregon has exquisite photos and information about all of Oregon's native butterfly species, covering the identification, distribution and biology of each species. A lively blog provides seasonal stories and updates from the field. Butterflies of Oregon Welcome to Butterflies of Oregon, a resource for Oregon butterfly enthusiasts, with photos of all of Oregon's regularly occurring butterfly species and information to help you find and identify them. Butterflies of Oregon also shares stories of the author's attempt to photograph all of Oregon's butterfly species in the wilds of Oregon. Thanks for visiting! www.butterfliesoforegon.com Subscribe to Blog Thanks for submitting! Email Us

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Lareg Marble butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Hat Point Rd, Wallowa Co, June 30 Large Marble Euchloe ausonides Size: Up to 1.75 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above, milk-white with black pattern on FW tip and narrow black bar in forewing cell, sometimes with light white scaling. Below, bold green marbling with yellow wash against white background and yellow veins. Similar species: California Marble and Desert Marble are smaller. California Marble has pearly or shiny look to white areas on VHW, and green marbling is often darker. Desert Marble lacks white scaling on forewing cell bar, and DFW tip markings often black rather than dark gray. Host plant: Many cruciferous species. Habitat: Open montane and foothill slopes, dry meadows and canyons, sage steppe habitats. Range: All of eastern Oregon and southwestern Oregon south of Douglas County. Season: Late March to late July Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Chalcedona Checkerspot butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Kinney Cr Rd, Jackson Co, May 26 Chalcedona Checkerspot Euphydryas chalcedona Size: Up to 2.75 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above black with alternating red and white spot bands separated by black lines. HW below has red and white bands, which, from the margin run red-white-red-white-white. Submarginal spot band on dorsal HW has larger pale ivory spots than other similar species. Similar species: Edith's checkerspot has red-white-red-red-white band pattern on HW below. Snowberry Checkerspot has smaller spots in the submarginal band on the dorsal HW, often more red on forewing, and longer forewings. Hostplant: Several species in the figwort family, including paintbushes (Castilleja ), penstemons, and monkeyflowers . Habitat: Mountains and high canyons. Range: Warner Mtns, southern Klamath Mtns and in Jackson and Josephine counties along the border with CA . Season: Late April to early August Abundance: Locally common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Spring Azure butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Fitton Green, Linn County, March 26 Echo Azure Celastrina echo AKA Pacific Azure Size: 1.0 - 1.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Male lilac-blue above, with no black markings. Female dusky-blue, with few marginal spots ringed with gray, FW with dark bands on outer edge. Below, bright gray-white, with very light marginal band of chevrons, and small black spots. Below, gray discal bars on both FW and HW. Similar species: Light markings below with no tails or orange spots distinctive and usually easy to distinguish from other blues. Host plant: Many shrub species including red osier dogwood, elderberry, madrone, snowbrush, and oceanspray . Habitat: Shrubby habitats and riparian areas. Range: Most of Oregon except dry basin and range areas on the east side of Cascade Mtns. Season: Late February to early October Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure

This page provides background on the Butterflies of Oregon website, and about the photography, the author/photographer, and the purpose and history of ButterfliesofOregon.com. This site will be updated periodically each year, so please visit often! The Project Butterflies of Oregon is both an online guide to Oregon's butterfly species and a record of my endeavor to photograph all of Oregon's regularly occurring and breeding described butterfly species inside the borders of the state. As I continue to pursue images of those remaining species that have as yet eluded me and my camera, I plan to use the website, the information I’ve collected, and the stories about the butterflies and the photos to educate interested folks about native butterflies in Oregon, their habitats, their ecology and their conservation. Public presentations, and educational publications are likely to come with time. Check back here for updates or sign up to be notified of new Blog entries. The Photos All of the photographs of live butterflies in this website were taken by myself, Neil Bjorklund, of wild, un-manipulated butterflies, within the borders of Oregon. These photos are the best images sifted from my library of more than 10,0 00 photos of butterflies in Oregon (as of fall 2023). Considering all the photos that weren't high enough quality to keep, it’s safe to say I’ve taken something like 12,000-15,000 photos of butterflies in Oregon to produce this set of about 300! The images of pinned butterflies from the Oregon State Arthropod Collection were taken by me and by Dana Ross, lepidopterist extraordinaire, with support from Paul Hammond who selected the specimens for us. Thank you, Dana and Paul! I took the live butterfly images primarily in the years 2002-2006 and 2014-2023, so over about 13 years (as of 2023). I have experimented with a variety of cameras and lenses over the years. I began the switch to digital photography in 2003 with my beloved Nikon CoolPix E995. The lion’s share of the photos were taken with these four digital set-ups: FujiFilm X-T1/X-T3 / X-T4 with a Fuji 80 mm F2.8 Macro Lens Sony RX10 Mark IV Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Nikon CoolPix E995 The Photographer I am an Oregon boy through and through, born and raised in SW Portland. The earliest I can remember attempting butterfly photos was on a family vacation in California in about 1968, and my images of Pipevine Swallowtails along the side of Highway 99 taken with my little plastic camera didn't come out very well. Eight years later (1976) I got my first "real" camera - a spiffy Nikormat FT3 SLR! With that camera I took my first decent photograph of a butterfly in Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1979—a Common Buckeye on the shore of Green Bay. Click the "More"button below to see that photo and read more history. More

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Sachem butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Boardman, Morrow County, August 24 - male Sachem Atalopedes campestris Size: Up to 1.5 inch wingspan Key ID features: Larger and longer winged than other comparable Oregon skippers. Above orangish-brown, with dark brown borders. Male with large rectangular black patch around stigmata and vague light orange pattern on HW. Female above with dark patch on FW, with pale yellow spot band beyond that, and HW with light orange spot band. Male HW below with broad light yellowish patches sometimes nearly enclosing a darker rectangular patch . Female below, with darker HW ground color and curved band of smaller, more distinct spots. Similar species: Yuma Skipper and Juba Skipper are of similar size. Yuma Skipper is plain above and below. Juba Skipper has green gray ground color below with bold white spot bands. Host plant: Various grass species. Habitat: Pastures, gardens, roadsides and open prairie. Range: Cascade Range, Siskiyou Mtns, Willamette Valley, Columbia and Deschutes river drainages. Season: Late May to late August Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Lustrous Copper butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Sand Cr, Klamath Co, June 25 - female Lustrous Copper Lycaena cupreus Size: 0.75- 1.25 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above bold orange with bold black spots and borders, female with more and larger spots. Below HW gray or creamy gray with large black spots and orange submarginal line, sometimes segmented. FW below light orange with large black spots and grayish outer margin. Similar species: Lustrous is deeper orange than other Oregon coppers with black spots above. Host plant: Dock (Rumex ) species are suspected. Habitat: Wet and dry meadows, open areas along streams. Range: South Cascade Mtns, Ochoco Mtns, Wallowa Mtns, Steens Mtn. Season: Late May to late-August Abundance: Locally common Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Coronis Fritillary butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Hand Lake, Lane Co, August 4 Coronis Fritillary Argynnis coronis AKA Speyeria coronis Size: Up to 3 inch wingspan Key ID features: Orange above with thin black veins, black shading near the body, black irregular lines inwardly, submarginal black spot band and black marking along margin like chain links, bolder on female. Below light tan-brown "disc" on HW with large silvery-white oval spots and warm tan submarginal band. Similar species: Callippe Fritillary is smaller, with silver spots showing through above more boldly. Host plant: Violet (Viola ) species, varying by region of state . Habitat: Open meadows, openings in oak-pine forest, lower slopes of mountains in eastern Oregon. Range: Cascade Range, Siskiyou Mtns, all of eastern Oregon except Gilliam, Morrow, Umatilla and Wallowa counties. Season: Early May to early October. Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure .

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Great Purple Hairstreak butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Kelley Cr, Warner Mtns, Lake Co, July 4 Great Purple Hairstreak Atlides halesus AKA Great Blue Hairstreak Size: 1.25 - 1.5 inches wingspan Key ID features: Above bright iridescent blue with black borders. Below black with iridescent blue band adjacent to long tails, red patches next to body and on sides of thorax. Similar species: No similar species in Oregon. Host plant: Oak mistletoe (Phoradendron leucarpum ). Habitat: Oak savanna, with mistletoe. Range: Warner Mtns, Siskiyou Mts, Willamette Valley. Season: Early April to early October Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for Riding's Satyr. Gallery Prev Next Light Peak, Warner Mtns, Lake Co, July 14 Ridings' Satyr Neominois ridingsii Size: Up to 2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above sandy gray-brown with elongated light tan to white patches on FW containing black eyespots with white centers. Sometimes one small eyespot on HW above. Below similar to above, but with HW having a more grizzled look crossed by zigzag dark lines and light vein lines. Very cryptic and difficult to spot when perched with wings closed. Similar species: None. Host plant: Grasses, but no specific species identified in Oregon . Habitat: Grassy habitats including sage-steppe, plateaus, montane meadows and dry hillsides. Range: Millican Flats area near Pine Mtn in Crook and Deschutes counties, Light Peak in Warner Mtns, Pueblo Mtns, Trout Creek Mtns. Season: Late June to mid-August Abundance: Uncommon Conservation Status: Secure

Photos, flight season, distribution and host plant information, conservation status, and identification tips for the Northern Cloudywing butterfly. Gallery Prev Next Staly Creek, Lane Co, June 25 Northern Cloudywing Thorybes pylades AKA Cecropterus pylades Size: Up to 2 inch wingspan Key ID features: Above very dark brown with a few narrow white bars and spots on FW. Bars and spots translucent. Below similar to above, dark brown with with a few narrow tan or off-white bars and spots on FW. Similar species: Western Cloudywing flies notably faster, perches on rocks, has shorter white sub-cell bar in FW. Host plant: Many legume species, but often associated with Lotus crassifolius in Oregon . Habitat: Canyons, clearings and flowery flatlands. Range: Cascade Range, Eastern Blue Mtns, Wallowa Mtns, Siskiyou Mtns, Klamath Mtns, Warner Mtns. Season: Late April to mid-July Abundance: Common Conservation Status: Secure