Butterflies Flying in New Mexico in May (60 Species)

60 butterflies were recorded flying in New Mexico in May in our iNaturalist sample; 8 of the top 50 are at their peak this month. The list is ranked by number of research-grade observations.

Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Top butterflies in May

Checkered White336 obs.

Marine Blue336 obs.

Painted Lady233 obs.

Mourning Cloak227 obs.

Variegated Fritillary199 obs.

Gray Hairstreak185 obs.

Two-tailed Swallowtail175 obs.

Small White135 obs.

Juniper Hairstreak123 obs.

Reakirt's Blue98 obs.

Arizona Sister89 obs.

Queen86 obs.

All butterflies flying in New Mexico in May

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	Checkered White	Pontia protodice	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	336	Jul (rising)
2	Marine Blue	Leptotes marina	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	336	May (peak)
3	Painted Lady	Vanessa cardui	Brush-footed Butterflies	233	Jul (rising)
4	Mourning Cloak	Nymphalis antiopa	Brush-footed Butterflies	227	Jun (rising)
5	Variegated Fritillary	Euptoieta claudia	Brush-footed Butterflies	199	Jul (rising)
6	Gray Hairstreak	Strymon melinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	185	Jul (rising)
7	Two-tailed Swallowtail	Papilio multicaudata	Swallowtails and Parnassians	175	Jul (rising)
8	Small White	Pieris rapae	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	135	May (peak)
9	Juniper Hairstreak	Callophrys gryneus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	123	Jul (rising)
10	Reakirt's Blue	Echinargus isola	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	98	Jul (rising)
11	Arizona Sister	Adelpha eulalia	Brush-footed Butterflies	89	Aug (rising)
12	Queen	Danaus gilippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	86	Aug (rising)
13	Field Crescent	Phyciodes pulchella	Brush-footed Butterflies	82	May (peak)
14	Silver-spotted Skipper	Epargyreus clarus	Skippers	75	Jun (rising)
15	Dainty Sulphur	Nathalis iole	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	74	Oct (rising)
16	Black Swallowtail	Papilio polyxenes	Swallowtails and Parnassians	73	Jul (rising)
17	Sleepy Orange	Eurema nicippe	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	70	Jul (rising)
18	Lupine Blue	Icaricia lupini	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	66	May (peak)
19	Western Tiger Swallowtail	Papilio rutulus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	64	Jun (rising)
20	Gray Buckeye	Junonia grisea	Brush-footed Butterflies	63	Oct (rising)
21	Western Pine Elfin	Callophrys eryphon	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	54	May (peak)
22	Western Tailed-blue	Everes amyntula	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	53	May (peak)
23	Common Sootywing	Pholisora catullus	Skippers	51	Aug (rising)
24	Orange Sulphur	Colias eurytheme	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	49	Jul (rising)
25	Silvery Blue	Glaucopsyche lygdamus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	45	Jun (rising)
26	Hoary Comma	Polygonia gracilis	Brush-footed Butterflies	41	Jul (rising)
27	Echo Azure	Celastrina echo	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	39	May (peak)
28	Northern Cloudywing	Cecropterus pylades	Skippers	37	Jun (rising)
29	Red Admiral	Vanessa atalanta	Brush-footed Butterflies	36	Jul (rising)
30	Mylitta Crescent	Phyciodes mylitta	Brush-footed Butterflies	36	Apr (past peak)
31	Western Pygmy-Blue	Brephidium exilis	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	35	Sep (rising)
32	Melissa Blue	Plebejus melissa	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	34	Jul (rising)
33	Orange Skipperling	Oarisma aurantiaca	Skippers	31	Sep (rising)
34	Sleepy Duskywing	Erynnis brizo	Skippers	29	Apr (past peak)
35	Margined White	Pieris marginalis	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	29	Jul (rising)
36	Weidemeyer's Admiral	Limenitis weidemeyerii	Brush-footed Butterflies	28	Jul (rising)
37	Milbert's Tortoiseshell	Aglais milberti	Brush-footed Butterflies	26	Jul (rising)
38	Anise Swallowtail	Papilio zelicaon	Swallowtails and Parnassians	24	Jun (rising)
39	Sagebrush Checkerspot	Chlosyne acastus	Brush-footed Butterflies	23	Apr (past peak)
40	Pipevine Swallowtail	Battus philenor	Swallowtails and Parnassians	22	Jun (rising)
41	Viceroy	Limenitis archippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	22	Aug (rising)
42	Bordered Patch	Chlosyne lacinia	Brush-footed Butterflies	22	Aug (rising)
43	Texan Crescent	Anthanassa texana	Brush-footed Butterflies	22	May (peak)
44	Funereal Duskywing	Erynnis funeralis	Skippers	20	Jul (rising)
45	American Lady	Vanessa virginiensis	Brush-footed Butterflies	19	Jul (rising)
46	Monarch	Danaus plexippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	17	Aug (rising)
47	Satyr Comma	Polygonia satyrus	Brush-footed Butterflies	17	Jul (rising)
48	Dreamy Duskywing	Erynnis icelus	Skippers	17	Jun (rising)
49	Hackberry Emperor	Asterocampa celtis	Brush-footed Butterflies	17	Jul (rising)
50	Pale Swallowtail	Papilio eurymedon	Swallowtails and Parnassians	16	Jun (rising)