silvery checkerspot

silvery checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis)
Photos © Mary Kay Rubey

FEATURES
The silvery checkerspot has a wingspan of 1.5 to 2.0 inches. The upperside of the wings is orange with black lines, patches and spots. The tip of the forewing is dark. There is a dark border on both wing edges. A row of spots on the upperside of the hindwing usually has one or two spots with a white center. The underside has orange, ivory and tan colors with brown lines and black spots. The underside of the hindwing has a row of ivory cells with brown borders near the center and one or more white spots near the edge.

BEHAVIORS
The silvery checkerspot lives statewide in open areas such as forest openings, stream banks, roadsides, meadows and bottomland forests. The adults eat nectar. The larvae eat daisies. The species overwinters in the larval stage. Two generations are produced per year. Adults are active from April to mid-September.

​Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalida