Lancaster County Butterflies

Butterflies of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania ---- Sightings in 2025

Photographs of Lancaster County Butterflies from 2013

(2012 photos) (2011 photos)

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The butterfly species with dates have been seen in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania this year. There are records of 114 species for Lancaster County. The list below includes all those seen in 2009 through 2018, a total of 90 species. New species seen in 2025, but not in 2009 through 2024 will be added in red. (No data recorded in 2014) No species were added to the list in 2024.
If you have a reliable sighting not on this list for 2025, please send an email to

. If you are not sure, but have a photograph, please send it. Contributors are vital to this data. We will appreciate your help.

Beginning in 2009 and since 2016 covering 12 months

Sightings in 2025 - 57 species so far (November - 6, October - 16, September - 17,
August - (22), July - 33, June - 37, May - 21, April - 15, March - 5, February - 0, January - 0)
(Latest new for year sightings: 0.) Many late dates now entered thanks to data from Fred Habegger.
Updated 11/12/25

THIS YEAR'S CONTRIBUTORS (6) are listed at the bottom of the page.

Some highlights for 2025.
First butterfly of the year: Mourning Cloak seen by Beth Katz on March 9 and on the next day by Fred Habegger.

The day of the first sighting is listed for each month.

	Family HESPERIIDAE	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Last
1	Silver-spotted Skipper						5	1	1		1			Oct 5
2	Long-tailed Skipper
3	Hoary-edged Skipper
4	Southern Cloudywing
5	Northern Cloudywing						8
6	Dreamy Duskywing
7	Sleepy Duskywing
8	Juvenal's Duskywing				24	1
9	Horace's Duskywing							1						Sep 30
10	Wild Indigo Duskywing				30		28	1	2	3				Sep 23
11	Common Checkered Skipper					10		14						Oct 10
12	Common Sootywing								2					Aug 19
13	Swarthy Skipper					26								Aug 28
14	Clouded Skipper
15	Least Skipper						22		2	3				Sep 29
16	European Skipper						5
17	Fiery Skipper										1	2		Nov 18
18	Leonard's Skipper
19	Cobweb Skipper
20	Indian Skipper
21	Peck's Skipper					10	5	12	2		6			Sep 23
22	Tawny-edged Skipper
23	Crossline Skipper
24	Long Dash						5
25	Northern Broken Dash
26	Little Glassy Wing						22
27	Sachem						5	12			1	3		Nov 8
28	Delaware Skipper
29	Mulberry Wing						28
30	Hobomok Skipper					10
31	Zabulon Skipper					10	5		2					Aug 24
32	Broad-winged Skipper
33	Black Dash
34	Dun Skipper						28	22	23					Aug 23
35	Dusted Skipper
36	Ocola Skipper										1			Oct 16
	Family PAPILIONIDAE	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Last
37	Pipevine Swallowtail							22			8			Oct 8
38	Zebra Swallowtail			29	9	2		12		5
39	Black Swallowtail						28	12	3	3				Aug 24
40	Giant Swallowtail									3
41	Eastern Tiger Swallowtail				18	10	5	1	1	2				Sep 11
42	Spicebush Swallowtail				24	10	5	1	2					Sep 14
	Family PIERIDAE	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Last
43	Cabbage Butterfly = Cabbage White			18	9		3	1	2		1	2		Nov 2
44	Falcate Orangetip
45	Clouded Sulphur						28							Oct 18
46	Orange Sulphur				23	12	6	1	2		1	1		Nov 4
47	Cloudless Sulphur							12
48	Little Yellow
49	Sleepy Orange					1	10	12	1	1	1	2		Nov 2
50	Dainty Sulphur
	Family LYCAENIDAE	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Last
51	Harvester
52	American Copper							12
53	Bronze Copper
54	Coral Hairstreak
55	Banded Hairstreak						28
56	Red-banded Hairstreak					18			3	2	7			Oct 7
57	Juniper Hairstreak
58	Brown Elfin
59	Henry's Elfin
60	Pine Elfin
61	White-m Hairstreak				20
62	Gray Hairstreak				18			12		3				Oct 27
63	Eastern Tailed Blue				30	2	5	1		1				Sep 26
64	Spring Azure			29	9
65	Summer Azure						28	4	2	2	30			Oct 30
66	Appalachian Azure
	Unknown Azure - Need Size to ID.						(5)
	Family NYMPHALIDAE Subfamily LIBYTHEINAE	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Last
67	Snout Butterfly							12	2					Aug 29
	Subfamily HELICONIINAE
68	Variegated Fritillary									2	29	2		Nov 8
69	Great Spangled Fritillary						3	1	2					Aug 2
70	Regal Fritillary
71	Meadow Fritillary				28	6	7	12						Oct 3
72	Silvery Checkerspot
	Subfamily NYMPHALINAE
73	Pearl Crescent				30	3	28	1	2					Oct 27
74	Baltimore						28	4
75	Question Mark					17	10	2	2
76	Eastern Comma			27			22	4			3			Oct 3
77	Mourning Cloak			9	9		5			18				Sep 18
78	American Painted Lady					10	28	12			3			Oct 3
79	Painted Lady									28				Sep 28
80	Red Admiral				20	25	28	2	3	28				Sep 28
81	Buckeye						22	23		1	1			Oct 19
82	Red-spotted Purple					17	5	12
83	Viceroy								1					Aug 19
	Subfamily APATURINAE
84	Hackberry Butterfly = Hackberry Emperor
85	Tawny Emperor
	Subfamily SATYRINAE
86	Appalachian Eyed Brown						14
87	Little Wood Satyr					25	5
87	Common Wood Nymph						29	2
	Subfamily DANAINAE
89	Monarch					11	8	1	1	1	1			Oct 14
	Monthly Totals			5	15	21	36	33	22	17	16	6

Yearly butterfly sightings in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

2009 (67)	2010 (72)	2011 (70)	2012 (79)	2013 (75)	2014 (__)
2015 (60)	2016 (62)	2017 (61)	2018 (57)	2019 (58)	2020 (53)
2021 (60)	2022 (56+)	2023 (58)	2024 (--)	2025 (--)

Contributors to this year's sightings are: Fred Habegger, Beth Katz, Robert Noll,
Tony Schoch, Dave Sonnen, Carol Welsh, and Warren Wolf.

For Berks County, PA butterfly sightings go to Berks Butterfly Sightings - 2025.

A site with data on butterfly distributions by county (and photographs) for North America can be found at Butterflies and Moths of NA. (http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/)