Chalcedon Checkerspot

Puddling

Chalcedon Checkerspot
Euphydryas chalcedona
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae

Life History: Males perch or patrol all day for females. Eggs are laid in large groups on underside of leaves of host plants. Caterpillars feed together on leaves, flowers, or bracts in a silk nest. Third- and fourth-stage caterpillars hibernate under rocks or in litter. Caterpillars in high elevations can hibernate for several years.

Flight: One flight; April-June in California and Oregon, June-July in the north and higher elevations. Several flights from April-October in western Arizona, southern Nevada, and the Mojave Desert.

Caterpillar

Caterpillar Hosts: Besseya, penstemon, and Indian paintbrush (Scrophulariaceae); snowberry and honeysuckle (Caprifoliaceae); and plants from several other families including Boraginaceae (borage, forget-me-not) and Rosaceae (rose family).

Chrysalis

Adult Food: Flower nectar.

Habitat: Sagebrush flats, chaparral, desert hills, high prairie, open forest, alpine tundra.

Range: Alaska south along the Pacific Coast through California and Arizona to Baja California and Mexico; east to Montana, the Dakotas, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico.



Caterpillar and chrysalis photos from web.