Speyeria hesperis
Encyclopedia
The Northwestern Fritillary (Speyeria hesperis) is a butterfly
of the Nymphalidae
family. It is found in the Northwestern United States
and Western Canada
, as far east as Manitoba and the Dakotas.
With a wingspan of between 45 to 58 mm, this fritillary is relatively small. It has bright orange uppersides (yellow in females) and thinner black markings than most fritillaries.
Butterfly
A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...
of the Nymphalidae
Nymphalidae
The Nymphalidae is a family of about 5,000 species of butterflies which are distributed throughout most of the world. These are usually medium sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting. They are also called...
family. It is found in the Northwestern United States
Northwestern United States
The Northwestern United States comprise the northwestern states up to the western Great Plains regions of the United States, and consistently include the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, to which part of southeast Alaska is also sometimes included...
and Western Canada
Western Canada
Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces and commonly as the West, is a region of Canada that includes the four provinces west of the province of Ontario.- Provinces :...
, as far east as Manitoba and the Dakotas.
With a wingspan of between 45 to 58 mm, this fritillary is relatively small. It has bright orange uppersides (yellow in females) and thinner black markings than most fritillaries.
Similar Species
- Aphrodite FritillaryAphrodite FritillaryThe Aphrodite Fritillary is a fritillary from North America.This orange coloured fritillary has rows of dark dots or chevrons at the wing edges and black or brown lines more proximally. The ventral side of the wings are also orange with several rows of white dots. Its wingspan is between 51 and...
(Speyeria aphrodite) - Atlantis Fritillary (Speyeria atlantisSpeyeria atlantisThe Atlantis Fritillary is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family of North America. It is from the Avalon Pennisula of Newfoundland and Labrador to northern British Columbia, across northern United States south as far as Colorado and West Virginia...
)