Butterflies and Moths of Arizona Conservation Status

Arizona Butterfly and Moth Conservation Checklist

Click here for an earlier post with a more detailed discussion.

Butterflies, just like honey bees and other pollinators, are declining because of habitat loss and because of pesticides. Even herbicides can be deadly. Monarch butterflies for instance, do not lay many eggs if there aren’t any milkweeds, and people routinely eradicate milkweeds along with other plants.

According to the Arizona Game and Fish Department, the conservation status of most butterflies is unknown. Our knowledge of moths is even less complete. Most moth species have not been identified, and there is almost no information on the conservation status of Arizona moths. The number given below for butterflies at risk of extinction is almost certainly lower than the actual number.

Butterfly and Moth Photographs

Here are a few sample photographs of butterflies and moths seen around my home in Dewey-Humboldt on the Agua Fria River in central Arizona. If there was a common designation of knowledge below “amateur,” it would describe my expertise with the Lepodoptera. Thus, I could not identify some of the photographed species with confidence. This is especially true for moths.

Butterfly and Moth Species Numbers

World: 150,000
United States: 4300
Arizona: Butterflies, 368; Moths, 615+
Arizona native butterflies at risk of extinction: 36

Butterfly and Moth References

The online Naturalist’s Bookstore has field guides (at the end of the category list) and other references. Go to: http://bit.ly/RKW2bC.

Bailowitz, R., and J.Brock. 1991. Butterflies of southeastern Arizona. Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute. Tucson, AZ. 364 p.
BAMONA. 2013. (Butterflies and moths of North America): http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/.
Beyond Pesticides: http://beyondpesticides.org/.
Gardens With Wings: http://www.gardenswithwings.com/index.html.
Glassberg, J. 2001. Butterflies through binoculars: The West. Oxford University Press, New York, NY. 374 p.
International Lepidoptera Society: http://tils-ttr.org.
LAB (Learn About Butterflies): www.learnaboutbutterflies.com.
NABA (North American Butterfly Association): http://www.naba.org/.
Pesticide Action Network: http://panna.org.
Scoble, M.J. 1995. The Lepidoptera: Form, function, and diversity. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 416 p.

Arizona Butterfly Conservation Status Symbols Used in the Checklist

E = Species endangered in all or part of its range according to the U. S. Endangered Species Act (ESA).
I = Introduced and Invasive species from various sources.
S = Species recognized as candidates for listing as E or T according to ESA, and species of concern to the Arizona Game and Fish Department, U. S. Bureau of Land Management, U. S. Forest Service, Navajo Tribe, and Mexican government (includes Arizona species that are endangered, threatened, or of concern in Mexico).
T = Species threatened in all or part of its range according to the ESA.
X = Species extinct over part or all of the species range within Arizona.

Arizona Butterfly Checklist

The checklist includes all Arizona butterflies and the family and subfamily names for moths. There are possibly 10 times as many moth species as butterfly species, but since most moths are observable only at night, most species have not been identified. Moreover, the distribution of known species is uncertain. A list of known species of Arizona moths is available at BAMONA.org.