Butterflies Flying in Virginia in April (60 Species)

60 butterflies were recorded flying in Virginia in April in our iNaturalist sample; 10 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 April

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail1,859 obs.

Eastern Tailed-Blue1,092 obs.

Zebra Swallowtail887 obs.

Juvenal's Duskywing705 obs.

Pearl Crescent666 obs.

Spicebush Swallowtail397 obs.

Silver-spotted Skipper393 obs.

American Lady384 obs.

Eastern Comma322 obs.

Red-banded Hairstreak298 obs.

Small White280 obs.

Pipevine Swallowtail261 obs.

All butterflies flying in Virginia in April

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	Eastern Tiger Swallowtail	Papilio glaucus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	1,859	Aug (rising)
2	Eastern Tailed-Blue	Everes comyntas	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	1,092	Sep (rising)
3	Zebra Swallowtail	Eurytides marcellus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	887	Jun (rising)
4	Juvenal's Duskywing	Erynnis juvenalis	Skippers	705	Apr (peak)
5	Pearl Crescent	Phyciodes tharos	Brush-footed Butterflies	666	Sep (rising)
6	Spicebush Swallowtail	Papilio troilus	Swallowtails and Parnassians	397	Aug (rising)
7	Silver-spotted Skipper	Epargyreus clarus	Skippers	393	Aug (rising)
8	American Lady	Vanessa virginiensis	Brush-footed Butterflies	384	Jun (rising)
9	Eastern Comma	Polygonia comma	Brush-footed Butterflies	322	Mar (past peak)
10	Red-banded Hairstreak	Calycopis cecrops	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	298	Aug (rising)
11	Small White	Pieris rapae	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	280	Jun (rising)
12	Pipevine Swallowtail	Battus philenor	Swallowtails and Parnassians	261	Jul (rising)
13	Falcate Orangetip	Anthocharis midea	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	208	Apr (peak)
14	Black Swallowtail	Papilio polyxenes	Swallowtails and Parnassians	194	Aug (rising)
15	Henry's Elfin	Callophrys henrici	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	188	Apr (peak)
16	Zabulon Skipper	Lon zabulon	Skippers	188	Aug (rising)
17	Mourning Cloak	Nymphalis antiopa	Brush-footed Butterflies	151	May (rising)
18	Monarch	Danaus plexippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	145	Aug (rising)
19	Red Admiral	Vanessa atalanta	Brush-footed Butterflies	143	Jul (rising)
20	Question Mark	Polygonia interrogationis	Brush-footed Butterflies	138	Aug (rising)
21	Sleepy Duskywing	Erynnis brizo	Skippers	137	Apr (peak)
22	Juniper Hairstreak	Callophrys gryneus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	129	Jul (rising)
23	Palamedes Swallowtail	Papilio palamedes	Swallowtails and Parnassians	109	Apr (peak)
24	Orange Sulphur	Colias eurytheme	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	103	Jul (rising)
25	Carolina Satyr	Hermeuptychia sosybius	Brush-footed Butterflies	93	Aug (rising)
26	Eastern Gemmed-Satyr	Cyllopsis gemma	Brush-footed Butterflies	70	Apr (peak)
27	Eastern Pine Elfin	Callophrys niphon	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	66	Apr (peak)
28	White M Hairstreak	Parrhasius m-album	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	64	Sep (rising)
29	Common Checkered-Skipper	Burnsius communis	Skippers	56	Oct (rising)
30	Silvery Checkerspot	Chlosyne nycteis	Brush-footed Butterflies	53	Jul (rising)
31	Red-spotted Admiral	Limenitis arthemis	Brush-footed Butterflies	50	Aug (rising)
32	Harvester	Feniseca tarquinius	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	46	Apr (peak)
33	Huron Skipper	Atalopedes huron	Skippers	44	Sep (rising)
34	Meadow Fritillary	Boloria bellona	Brush-footed Butterflies	43	Jul (rising)
35	American Snout	Libytheana carinenta	Brush-footed Butterflies	42	Jul (rising)
36	Gray Hairstreak	Strymon melinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	41	Aug (rising)
37	Wild Indigo Duskywing	Erynnis baptisiae	Skippers	39	Aug (rising)
38	Sleepy Orange	Eurema nicippe	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	39	Aug (rising)
39	Clouded Sulphur	Colias philodice	Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs	37	Sep (rising)
40	Variegated Fritillary	Euptoieta claudia	Brush-footed Butterflies	37	Sep (rising)
41	Brown Elfin	Callophrys augustinus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	35	Apr (peak)
42	Spring Azure	Celastrina ladon	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	34	Mar (past peak)
43	Dreamy Duskywing	Erynnis icelus	Skippers	32	May (rising)
44	Southern Pearly-eye	Lethe portlandia	Brush-footed Butterflies	30	Sep (rising)
45	Common Buckeye	Junonia coenia	Brush-footed Butterflies	28	Sep (rising)
46	Viceroy	Limenitis archippus	Brush-footed Butterflies	27	Sep (rising)
47	Summer Azure	Celastrina neglecta	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	24	Aug (rising)
48	Horace's Duskywing	Erynnis horatius	Skippers	21	Jul (rising)
49	Painted Lady	Vanessa cardui	Brush-footed Butterflies	18	Oct (rising)
50	Silvery Blue	Glaucopsyche lygdamus	Gossamer-winged Butterflies	14	Apr (peak)