Butterflies Flying in California in July (60 Species)

60 butterflies were recorded flying in California in July in our iNaturalist sample; 11 of the top 50 are at their peak this month. The list is ranked by number of research-grade observations.

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Top butterflies in July

Monarch8,108 obs.

Gray Buckeye4,176 obs.

Fiery Skipper3,342 obs.

Small White3,333 obs.

Western Tiger Swallowtail3,232 obs.

Gray Hairstreak3,101 obs.

Acmon Blue2,848 obs.

Anise Swallowtail2,718 obs.

Marine Blue2,392 obs.

Gulf Fritillary2,291 obs.

Lorquin's Admiral2,019 obs.

California Sister1,899 obs.

All butterflies flying in California in July

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	Monarch	Danaus plexippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	8,108	Jul (peak)
2	Gray Buckeye	Junonia grisea	Brush-footed Butterflies	4,176	Jun (past peak)
3	Fiery Skipper	Hylephila phyleus	Skippers	3,342	Sep (rising)
4	Small White	Pieris rapae	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	3,333	Jul (peak)
5	Western Tiger Swallowtail	Papilio rutulus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	3,232	Jun (past peak)
6	Gray Hairstreak	Strymon melinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	3,101	Aug (rising)
7	Acmon Blue	Icaricia acmon	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	2,848	Jul (peak)
8	Anise Swallowtail	Papilio zelicaon	Swallowtails and Parnassians	2,718	Jun (past peak)
9	Marine Blue	Leptotes marina	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	2,392	Jul (peak)
10	Gulf Fritillary	Dione vanillae	Brush-footed Butterflies	2,291	Sep (rising)
11	Lorquin's Admiral	Limenitis lorquini	Brush-footed Butterflies	2,019	Jun (past peak)
12	California Sister	Adelpha californica	Brush-footed Butterflies	1,899	Jun (past peak)
13	Mylitta Crescent	Phyciodes mylitta	Brush-footed Butterflies	1,598	Jun (past peak)
14	Mourning Cloak	Nymphalis antiopa	Brush-footed Butterflies	1,584	Apr (past peak)
15	Pale Swallowtail	Papilio eurymedon	Swallowtails and Parnassians	1,414	Jun (past peak)
16	Umber Skipper	Lon melane	Skippers	1,347	May (past peak)
17	Western Giant Swallowtail	Heraclides rumiko	Swallowtails and Parnassians	1,140	Sep (rising)
18	Checkered White	Pontia protodice	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	1,130	Jun (past peak)
19	American Lady	Vanessa virginiensis	Brush-footed Butterflies	1,108	Jul (peak)
20	California Tortoiseshell	Nymphalis californica	Brush-footed Butterflies	1,033	May (past peak)
21	Red Admiral	Vanessa atalanta	Brush-footed Butterflies	954	Apr (past peak)
22	West Coast Lady	Vanessa annabella	Brush-footed Butterflies	954	Apr (past peak)
23	Orange Sulphur	Colias eurytheme	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	883	Oct (rising)
24	Common Checkered-Skipper	Burnsius communis	Skippers	873	Oct (rising)
25	Woodland Skipper	Ochlodes sylvanoides	Skippers	866	Sep (rising)
26	Mournful Duskywing	Erynnis tristis	Skippers	854	Aug (rising)
27	Painted Lady	Vanessa cardui	Brush-footed Butterflies	817	Apr (past peak)
28	Clodius Parnassian	Parnassius clodius	Swallowtails and Parnassians	787	Jul (peak)
29	Hedgerow Hairstreak	Satyrium saepium	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	779	Jun (past peak)
30	Western Pygmy-Blue	Brephidium exilis	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	757	Oct (rising)
31	Greenish Blue	Icaricia saepiolus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	737	Jul (peak)
32	Boisduval's Blue	Icaricia icarioides	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	690	Jun (past peak)
33	Field Crescent	Phyciodes pulchella	Brush-footed Butterflies	641	Jun (past peak)
34	Common Ringlet	Coenonympha california	Brush-footed Butterflies	558	Apr (past peak)
35	Echo Azure	Celastrina echo	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	551	Jun (past peak)
36	Sandhill Skipper	Polites sabuleti	Skippers	543	Jul (peak)
37	Satyr Comma	Polygonia satyrus	Brush-footed Butterflies	500	Jun (past peak)
38	Behr's Metalmark	Apodemia virgulti	Metalmark Butterflies	474	May (past peak)
39	Variable Checkerspot	Euphydryas chalcedona	Brush-footed Butterflies	454	May (past peak)
40	Funereal Duskywing	Erynnis funeralis	Skippers	391	Mar (past peak)
41	Anna's Blue	Plebejus anna	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	365	Jul (peak)
42	Northern White-Skipper	Heliopetes ericetorum	Skippers	362	Jun (past peak)
43	Hoary Comma	Polygonia gracilis	Brush-footed Butterflies	355	Jul (peak)
44	Hydaspe Fritillary	Argynnis hydaspe	Brush-footed Butterflies	307	Jul (peak)
45	Pacific Fritillary	Boloria epithore	Brush-footed Butterflies	301	Jun (past peak)
46	Common Wood-Nymph	Cercyonis pegala	Brush-footed Butterflies	287	Jun (past peak)
47	Purplish Copper	Tharsalea helloides	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	286	Oct (rising)
48	Edith's Checkerspot	Euphydryas editha	Brush-footed Butterflies	273	May (past peak)
49	Queen	Danaus gilippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	270	Oct (rising)
50	Ceraunus Blue	Hemiargus ceraunus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	270	Jun (past peak)