Soldier (Danaus eresimus [Cramer])
Wing span: 2 3/4 - 3 3/4 inches (7 - 9.5 cm).
Identification: Upperside is brownish orange, darker at the wing bases; both wings with thin black veins. Forewing has fewer white spots than the Queen. Underside of hindwing has a pale band of blotchy pale spots.
Life history: Not reported.
Flight: From August-December in South Texas; all year in southern Florida, most common from October-December.
Caterpillar hosts: Milkweeds and milkweed vines.
Adult food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Open pastures and fields, edges of seasonally dry tropical forests.
Range: Southern Florida and South Texas south through the West Indies and Central America to Brazil. A rare stray to southern Arizona and southern New Mexico.
Conservation: Not usually required.
The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management needs: Conserve breeding areas in refuges along the lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas.
References:
Opler, P. A. and G. O. Krizek. 1984. Butterflies east of the Great Plains. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 294 pages, 54 color plates. Opler, P. A. and V. Malikul. 1992. A field guide to eastern butterflies. Peterson field guide #4. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston. 396 pages, 48 color plates. Scott, J. A. 1986. The butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, Calif. 583 pages, 64 color plates.
Author: Jane M. Struttmann
State and Regional References:
Layberry, R.A., Hall, P.W. & Lafontaine, D.J., 1998. The Butterflies of Canada. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, ON. 280 pp. Opler, P.A. 1998. A field guide to eastern butterflies, revised format. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.