Red-spotted admiral

The Red-spotted admiral is black with a strong blue to blue-green sheen across the hindwings and small orange spots near the wing edges on both surfaces. Northern individuals show a bold white band crossing both wings, a feature that fades out toward the south, and unlike a swallowtail it never grows tail-like extensions.

Caterpillars feed on the leaves of black cherry, willow, cottonwood, and several other trees and shrubs, and in autumn a partly grown caterpillar rolls part of a single leaf into a tube, ties it shut with silk, and spends the winter hidden inside before resuming feeding in spring.