Butterflies Flying in South Dakota in May (43 Species)

43 butterflies were recorded flying in South Dakota in May in our iNaturalist sample; 5 of the top 50 are at their peak this month. The list is ranked by number of research-grade observations.

May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct

Top butterflies in May

Red Admiral53 obs.

Painted Lady47 obs.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail37 obs.

Monarch28 obs.

Melissa Blue27 obs.

Silver-spotted Skipper22 obs.

Western Pine Elfin21 obs.

Silvery Blue17 obs.

Mourning Cloak13 obs.

Common Ringlet13 obs.

American Lady11 obs.

Anise Swallowtail11 obs.

All butterflies flying in South Dakota in May

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	Red Admiral	Vanessa atalanta	Brush-footed Butterflies	53	Sep (rising)
2	Painted Lady	Vanessa cardui	Brush-footed Butterflies	47	Sep (rising)
3	Eastern Tiger Swallowtail	Papilio glaucus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	37	Aug (rising)
4	Monarch	Danaus plexippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	28	Sep (rising)
5	Melissa Blue	Plebejus melissa	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	27	Aug (rising)
6	Silver-spotted Skipper	Epargyreus clarus	Skippers	22	Jun (rising)
7	Western Pine Elfin	Callophrys eryphon	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	21	Jun (rising)
8	Silvery Blue	Glaucopsyche lygdamus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	17	Jun (rising)
9	Mourning Cloak	Nymphalis antiopa	Brush-footed Butterflies	13	Jun (rising)
10	Common Ringlet	Coenonympha california	Brush-footed Butterflies	13	Jun (rising)
11	American Lady	Vanessa virginiensis	Brush-footed Butterflies	11	May (peak)
12	Anise Swallowtail	Papilio zelicaon	Swallowtails and Parnassians	11	Jun (rising)
13	Common Sootywing	Pholisora catullus	Skippers	9	Aug (rising)
14	Orange Sulphur	Colias eurytheme	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	9	Aug (rising)
15	Gorgone Checkerspot	Chlosyne gorgone	Brush-footed Butterflies	8	Jul (rising)
16	Common Checkered-Skipper	Burnsius communis	Skippers	8	Aug (rising)
17	Variegated Fritillary	Euptoieta claudia	Brush-footed Butterflies	6	Jul (rising)
18	Canadian Tiger Swallowtail	Papilio canadensis	Swallowtails and Parnassians	5	Jun (rising)
19	Brown Elfin	Callophrys augustinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	5	May (peak)
20	Meadow Fritillary	Boloria bellona	Brush-footed Butterflies	5	Aug (rising)
21	Gray Hairstreak	Strymon melinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	4	Aug (rising)
22	Pearl Crescent	Phyciodes tharos	Brush-footed Butterflies	4	Aug (rising)
23	Dreamy Duskywing	Erynnis icelus	Skippers	4	May (peak)
24	Clouded Sulphur	Colias philodice	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	4	Jul (rising)
25	Western Tailed-blue	Everes amyntula	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	4	Jun (rising)
26	Two-tailed Swallowtail	Papilio multicaudata	Swallowtails and Parnassians	4	Jun (rising)
27	Milbert's Tortoiseshell	Aglais milberti	Brush-footed Butterflies	4	Jun (rising)
28	Peck's Skipper	Polites peckius	Skippers	4	Aug (rising)
29	Small White	Pieris rapae	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	3	Aug (rising)
30	Northern Crescent	Phyciodes cocyta	Brush-footed Butterflies	3	Jul (rising)
31	Gray Comma	Polygonia progne	Brush-footed Butterflies	3	Jul (rising)
32	Checkered White	Pontia protodice	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	3	Aug (rising)
33	Green Comma	Polygonia faunus	Brush-footed Butterflies	3	May (peak)
34	Juniper Hairstreak	Callophrys gryneus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	3	Jun (rising)
35	Common Buckeye	Junonia coenia	Brush-footed Butterflies	2	Jul (rising)
36	Satyr Comma	Polygonia satyrus	Brush-footed Butterflies	2	May (peak)
37	Tawny-edged Skipper	Polites themistocles	Skippers	2	Aug (rising)
38	Question Mark	Polygonia interrogationis	Brush-footed Butterflies	2	Jul (rising)
39	Northern Cloudywing	Cecropterus pylades	Skippers	2	Jun (rising)
40	Dainty Sulphur	Nathalis iole	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	1	Oct (rising)
41	Black Swallowtail	Papilio polyxenes	Swallowtails and Parnassians	1	Aug (rising)
42	Viceroy	Limenitis archippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	1	Aug (rising)
43	Sagebrush Checkerspot	Chlosyne acastus	Brush-footed Butterflies	1	Jul (rising)