Butterliz of Iowa - Butterfly Habitat Conservation

Butterfly Habitat & Conservation

Midwestern Butterflies You Can See in Your Backyard

Butterfly	Host-Larvae Food	Adult Food	Comments
American Copper	Sorrels, docks	white clover, yarrow, butterfly weed	likes fields and roadsides
American Painted Lady	Everlastings, pussy toes	zinnias, cosmos, petunias	likes to puddle in open moist areas
Black Swallowtail	Carrots, dill, parsley, parsnip	giant zinnias, asters, sunflowers	likes open areas, puddlings
Blues	Clover, vetch	legumes, clovers, asters	like to puddle
Buckeye	Plantains & snapdragons	snapdragons, butterfly weed	likes to puddle, prefers weedy areas
Comma & Question Mark	Nettles	Sap, grasses	prefer log piles for hiding
Fritillaries	Violets	butterfly weed, Joe pye weed	like open areas with lots of moisture
Giant Swallowtail	Prickly ash, hop tree	lantana, trumpet vine, tall Phlox	likes puddling, dung
Gulf Fritillary	Passionflowers	lantana, butterfly bush, phlox	prefers open areas
Hairstreaks	Oaks, hickories, legumes	Nicotiana, daises, violets, phlox	likes to puddle
Milbert's Tortoiseshell	Nettles	Sap and fruit, coneflowers, daises	likes open areas near streams
Monarchs	Milkweed	Sedum, butterfly weed, rotting fruit	loves watermelon, cosmos, zinnias
Mourning Cloak	Willow, birch, aspens, elms	Sap, fruit, gas plant, Joe Pye Weed,	likes to puddle, prefers open areas
Painted Lady	Thistles, hollyhocks	hollyhocks, Joe Pye Weed,	likes to puddle in open areas, rotting fruit
Pipevine Swallowtail	Pipevines	cosmos, sunflowers, phlox	likes woods & open areas, puddlings
Red Admiral	Nettles	Sap, fruit, dung, asters, violets	likes moist wood edges
Red Spotted Purple	Wild Cherry, aspens	rotting fruit, black-eyed susans	likes moist forests with willows
Skippers & Satyr	Grasses	sap, grass plant juices	usually very low to the ground
Spicebush Swallowtail	Spicebush, sassafras	pepper grass and winter cress	likes puddles
Sulfurs	Peas, clover, alfalfa, vetches	marigolds, cosmos, coreopsis	likes to puddle, loves dandelions & clover
Tiger Swallowtail	Black cherry, aspen	Nicotiana, giant zinnias	prefer trees nearby
Viceroy	Willows, aspens	Sap, dung, asters, penta, lantana	likes to puddle
Whites	cabbage, kale, broccoli	pepper grass and winter cress	dandelions in spring, red clover in summer

Herb List For Butterflies

HERB	HOST PLANT TO:	HERB	HOST PLANT TO:
Anise	Black Swallowtail	Marjoram	Sootywings
Basil	Good Nectar source	Mallow	Painted Lady, Hairstreak, Skippers
Bee Balm	Good Nectar source	Mints	Gray Hairstreak
Borage and Burdock	Painted Lady	Mustards	Orange Tips, Marblewings
Caraway	Black Swallowtail	Nasturtium	Cabbage White, Spring Azure
Parsley	Black Swallowtail	Nettle	Question Mark, Comma, Red Admiral
Clover	Sulphurs and White	Pennyroyal	Repels Deer Ticks
Dill	Black Swallowtail	Plantain	Variegated Fritillary, Checkerspots, Buckeye
Dock	Coppers	Rue	Black Swallowtail
Fennel	Black Swallowtail	Sage	Good Nectar source
Wild Ginger	Pipevine	Sassafras	Spicebush Swallowtail
Hop Vine	Tortoise Shell, Red Admiral	Vervain	Checkerspot
Hyssop (water)	Good Nectar source	Violet	Fritillaries
Lavender	Black Swallowtail	Yarrow	Black Swallowtail

Insect Deterrent Plants
PLANT	INSECT DETERRED	PLANT	INSECT DETERRED
Anise	Aphids	Mints	Ants
Aster	Most	Nasturtium	Aphids
Basil	Flies & Mosquitoes	Petunia	Most
Bee Balm	Most	Rosemary	Cabbage Moth
Coriander	Aphids	Rue	Japanese Beetle
Garlic	Japanese Beetle	Sage	Cabbage Moth
Marigolds	Real Workhorse	Tansy	Ants & Plant Lice

Milkweed Plants

	Common Name	Description
Asclepias tuberosa	Butterfly Weed	Perennial prairie plant with orange clusters and deep, thick roots. Blooms June to September. Grows 2-3 feet tall.
Asclepias speciosa	Showy Milkweed	Perennial with ten to twenty five point star shaped, pink flowers on a stem with oval shaped leaves six to eight inches long. Grows 2-4 feet tall and be aggressive.
Asclepias incarnata	Swamp Milkweed	Native perennial with red, bright pink or white flowers. Long thin leaves, blooms July and August, grows 2-4 feet tall.
Asclepias syriaca	Common Milkweed	Perennial with pink flower clusters on top. Plants bloom in late summer. Grows 3-4 feet tall and can be aggressive.
Ascelpias sullivante	Smooth Milkweed	Perennial with pink flower clusters on top. Plants bloom in late summer. Grows 3-4 feet tall and can be aggressive. Perennial herb from a deep rhizome. Flowers are dull purplish-pink to greenish white.
Asclepias curassavica	Tropical Milkweed	Perennial herb with reddish orange and yellow flowers; commonly visited by butterflies, moths, bees, wasps, flies, and beetles. Found in roadsides and pastures

Butterfly Pie Puddles

Butterfly pie puddles give butterflies a helping hand by offering them a drink. Butterflies must drink water from nectar and other moist substances. Male butterflies often "puddle" in the summertime at muddy spots which provide butterflies with the water and minerals they need. You can provide a mud puddle for butterflies to gather in.

What You Need:

Flat pan (such as a pie pan)

Garden soil

Water

Fill an old pie pan or other shallow pan nearly to the rim with plain dirt, which is rich in minerals. Add water to make soupy mud. Set your homemade mud puddle out where lots of flowers attract butterflies. Add enough water each day to keep the mud very wet. Watch the puddle over several days. You may see butterflies landing on the mud for a drink.

Butterfly Delight Muffins

Butterfly Delight Muffins are flowery treats that butterflies love to eat. Choose a nice sunny day to whip up a batch of these sweet "mud muffins," and watch to see who flies by! You won't want to place these muffins too close to the house, since there might be bugs also dropping by for a snack. And while these muffins look good enough to eat, unless you're a butterfly, don't try them!

What You Need:

Soil Water

Flower Petals � cup honey or

Individual muffin cups corn syrup

Spoon Flowers

Mix the soil and water together to make a nice, firm mud. Collect some wildflower petals, and stir into the mud. Add the honey or corn syrup, and stir well. Spoon the mix into individual muffin cups, and top each with a pretty flower top. Set the muffins in a place where you have seen butterflies before. Now wait for your fluttering guests to arrive.