Butterflies of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania ---- Sightings in 2019
Photographs of Lancaster County Butterflies from 2013

(2012 photos)  (2011 photos)   Berks County Butterfly Sightings - 2019

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    The butterfly species with dates have been seen in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania this year. There are records of 113 (updated 6-5-19) species for Lancaster County. The list below includes all those seen in 2009 through 2018, a total of 89 species. (No data recorded in 2014.) New species seen in 2019, but not in 2009 through 2018) will be added in red. No species were added to the list in 2018.   
If you have a reliable sighting not on this list for 2019, 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 2019 - 58 species so far (November 7, October 20, September 32,
August Incomplete, July 40, June 25, May 30, April 13, March 3,
February 0, January 0 species)
(Last species seen this year so far: Orange Sulphur, Nov. 21.)
Updated 11/23/19 with more late dates.
THIS YEAR'S CONTRIBUTORS (13) are listed at the bottom of the page.
Some highlights for 2019.
* First butterfly of the year on 14 March. Eastern Comma by Fred Habegger.
* First Monarch of the year on 8 May by Fred Habegger.
* Long-tailed Skipper (a rare visiter to Lancaster County and last reported in 2012) seen 5 August by Gayle Steffy.
* A Banded Purple (a form of the Red-spotted Purple/White Admiral complex) with white bands was photographed on September 4 by Gail McKinne. This form is rarely seen in Lancaster County.
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The day of the first sighting is listed for each month plus the last date for the year.
Family HESPERIIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
1 Silver-spotted Skipper 30 7 4 1 2 2 Oct 24
2 Long-tailed Skipper 5
3 Hoary-edged Skipper
4 Southern Cloudywing 
5 Northern Cloudywing
6 Dreamy Duskywing  6
7 Sleepy Duskywing
8 Juvenal's Duskywing  30
9 Horace's Duskywing  13
10 Wild Indigo Duskywing 22 25 1
11 Common Checkered Skipper  26 1 23 2 Nov 2
12 Common Sootywing 31 Aug 31
13 Swarthy Skipper 12
14 Clouded Skipper
15 Least Skipper  19 5 2 3 Sep 15
16 European Skipper 
17 Fiery Skipper  30 9 5 2 Nov 2
18 Leonard's Skipper
19 Cobweb Skipper 
20 Indian Skipper
21 Peck's Skipper  19 13 1 11 Oct 11
22 Tawny-edged Skipper
23 Crossline Skipper
24 Long Dash 
25 Northern Broken Dash 
26 Little Glassy Wing 2
27 Sachem 7 1 1 4 Nov 4
28 Delaware Skipper 
29 Mulberry Wing
30 Hobomok Skipper 
31 Zabulon Skipper  26 13 2
32 Broad-winged Skipper
33 Black Dash 
34 Dun Skipper  24 Aug 24
35 Dusted Skipper  24
36 Ocola Skipper 2 9 Oct 14
Family PAPILIONIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
37 Pipevine Swallowtail  19
38 Zebra Swallowtail  28 19 2 13
39 Black Swallowtail  30 15 1 2 Sep 25
40 Giant Swallowtail  15 Sep 21
41 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail  18 6 12 1 2 Sep 15
42 Spicebush Swallowtail 28 6 12 2 31 19 Oct 19
Family PIERIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
43 Cabbage Butterfly = Cabbage White  20 4 2 5 1 2 1 Oct 24
44 Falcate Orangetip
45 Clouded Sulphur  23 4 2 1 24 Oct 24
46 Orange Sulphur 16 2 1 3 3 1 2 Nov 21
47 Cloudless Sulphur 13 2 Sep 25
48 Little Yellow
49 Sleepy Orange  30 1 1 2 1 Oct 14
50 Dainty Sulphur 
Family LYCAENIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
51 Harvester 
52 American Copper 
53 Bronze Copper
54 Coral Hairstreak
55 Banded Hairstreak  9 1
56 Red-banded Hairstreak 1 2 Oct 24
57 Juniper Hairstreak  24 13
58 Brown Elfin 
59 Henry's Elfin
60 Pine Elfin
61 White-m Hairstreak  15 15
62 Gray Hairstreak  2 5 Oct 15
63 Eastern Tailed Blue 12 15 1 1 5 Oct 12
64 Spring Azure  17 18
65 Summer Azure  5 2 2
66 Appalachian Azure
Family NYMPHALIDAE
 Subfamily LIBYTHEINAE 		 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
67 Snout Butterfly  19 4 13 9 Sep 9
Subfamily HELICONIINAE
68 Variegated Fritillary 13 1 1 2 Nov 2
69 Great Spangled Fritillary 30 7 2
70 Regal Fritillary
71 Meadow Fritillary 22 2 5 2 22 2 Oct 29
72 Silvery Checkerspot 24 Aug 24
Subfamily NYMPHALINAE
73 Pearl Crescent 28 6 2 2 1 Oct 27
74 Baltimore 
75 Question Mark 7 22
76 Eastern Comma 14 6 2 19 Sep 19
77 Mourning Cloak  6
78 American Painted Lady  20 7 7 13 15 Sep 15
79 Painted Lady  7 13 3 5 4 Nov 4
80 Red Admiral 2 1 1
81 Buckeye  6 1 1 1 2 Nov 5
82 Red-spotted Purple  19 9 13 2 Sep 29
82.2 RSP, Banded Purple form  4
83 Viceroy 30 2 13 2
Subfamily APATURINAE
84 Hackberry Butterfly = Hackberry Emperor 13 8 Sep 8
85 Tawny Emperor  13
Subfamily SATYRINAE
86 Appalachian Eyed Brown  7 2
87 Little Wood Satyr  24
87 Common Wood Nymph  2
Subfamily DANAINAE
89 Monarch 8 4 1 1 1 Oct 27
Monthly Totals 0 0 3 13 30 25 40 5 32 20 7

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 (61)
2022 (56+)
2023 (58)
2024 (--)
Contributors to this year's sightings are:
Jon Campbell, Cammy Freed, Kerry Givens, Fred Habegger, Gayle Lawrence, Rudy Keller, Gail McKinne, Mike McKinne. Denis Quinn, Jan Schaefer, Mike Slater, David Sonnen, and Gayle Steffy.
For Berks County, PA butterfly sightings go to Berks Butterfly Sightings - 2019.

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/)