Red Admiral Butterfly. Vanessa atalanta. Black butterfly. Insect. Photograph taken and design created by the author. Copyright © 2025 Now I Wonder. All rights reserved.

Wild Facts About The Red Admiral Butterfly

ByChristine Species Guides

Red Admiral Butterfly Images

How To Identify Red Admiral Butterflies

  • Red Admiral butterflies are medium-sized North Carolina butterflies with wingspans up to 3 inches (7.6 cm), black bodies, and dark eyes.
  • Above:
    • Squared-off forewings are black, with a wide red-orange band about two-thirds out from the base, and white spots at the tips.
    • Hind wings are black with a broad red-orange band along the trailing edge.
  • Below:
    • Forewing similar to the dorsal appearance but wing band is paler.
    • Hind wing is mottled brown, tan, and cream.
  • Red Admiral butterflies are found throughout North Carolina, but mostly in the spring only, and they are never very abundant.
    • Look for Red Admiral butterflies in moist areas, like around drainage canals, swampy areas, and ponds.
    • Red Admirals visit home gardens occasionally but not usually to visit flowers.
      • Red Admiral butterflies feed mostly on sap, dung, and fermenting fruit.

Red Admiral Butterfly Classification

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Nymphalidae (Brush-foot Butterflies)

Genus

Vanessa

Species

V. atalanta

Binomial Name

Vanessa atalanta

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Christine
Christine is the creator and author of NowIWonder.com, a website dedicated to the animals and plants that share our world, and the science that helps us understand them. Inspired by lifelong exploration and learning, Christine loves to share her knowledge with others who want to connect with wild faces and wild spaces.
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