Most anyone who lives in Texas is familiar with the heroic journey that theMonarch butterfly makes every year, as well as the beauty that species possesses. Yet there is a smaller, and less colorful, species of butterfly that also occurs here, and although it doesn’t make the epic flights like its cousin, it has its own identity.
The butterfly simply known as the Queen (Danaus gilippus) occurs throughout the western half of the United States but is frequents the southern areas of this range more consistently, including the majority of our great state. From here it inhabits the appropriate habitat through Mexico into South America as well.
The Queen, while not as colorful or showy as its close relative the Monarch, has its own distinctive beauty. The upper wings are dark orange in coloration and are bordered in black. There are numerous small white spots randomly situated inside of this black border, as well as along the rear edges of the orange-colored wings. Each side of the orange abdomen may or may not be adorned with two black spots on the upper wings.
