Butterflies of Berks County, Pennsylvania ---- Sightings in 2020
Butterfly walks in Berks County - 2020
Butterfly walks in Berks County - 2021

Photos of Berks Butterflies from 2012    (2011 photos)

Return to Berks County Nature     Lancaster Butterfly Sightings - 2020
    The butterfly species with dates recorded have been seen in Berks County, Pennsylvania this year. There are records of 107 species for Berks County. The list below includes all those reported from 2003 through 2019 plus this year, a total of 94. New species (not seen during 2003 - 2019) will be added in red. One species was added in 2013, 2015, and 2018. No data was collected in 2014.

      Again this year we are recording the first sighting for each month plus a last date for the year in order to have data over the season. If you have a later report than the "Last" date posted, please send it to the email below. 
       If you have a reliable sighting not on this list for 2020, please send an email to . If you are not sure and have a photograph, please send it. We appreciate your help. 
Sightings in 2020 - 68 species so far (November 11, October 27, September 39, August 48,
July 55, June 35, May - 28, April - 14, March - 5, February - 0, January - 0)
(Latest new for year sightings: Ocola Skipper.)
Updated 11/14/20
THIS YEAR'S CONTRIBUTORS (11) are listed at the bottom of the page.
Some highlights for 2020.
First butterflies of the year: 5 March (revised date): Mourning Cloak by Peter Wolfe. Followed by 9 March: Eastern Comma by Todd Underwood and Cabbage Butterfly by Lois Vedock.

The 30 March date reported by Lois Vedock for the American Painted Lady is the earliest in the 13 years the date has been recorded on this database.

The November 8 date reported by Lois Vedock for the Silver-spotted Skipper is the new state record as verified by David Wright who maintains the "Atlas of Pennsylvania Butterflies" database.

 The day of the first sighting is listed for each month plus the last date for the year.

Family HESPERIIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
1 Silver-spotted Skipper 2 1 2 1 3 1 8 Nov 8
2 Long-tailed Skipper
3 Hoary-edged Skipper
4 Northern Cloudywing
5 Dreamy Duskywing  2
6 Sleepy Duskywing 19
7 Juvenal's Duskywing  19 2
8 Horace's Duskywing  11 1 5
9 Wild Indigo Duskywing 28 14 1 5 8 5 3
10 Common Checkered Skipper  3 28 1 3 1 7 Nov 7
11 Common Sootywing 11 8
12 Swarthy Skipper 17 5 8
13 Least Skipper  16 1 1 4
14 European Skipper  28
15 Fiery Skipper  13 21 4
16 Leonard's Skipper
17 Cobweb Skipper 
18 Indian Skipper
19 Peck's Skipper  7 3 1 3 2
20 Tawny-edged Skipper 19 1
21 Crossline Skipper 11 17 7
22 Long Dash 
23 Northern Broken Dash  5
24 Little Glassywing 24 1
25 Sachem 7 1 2 1
26 Delaware Skipper 
27 Mulberry Wing
28 Hobomok Skipper  1
29 Zabulon Skipper  16 1 1 1 3
30 Broad-winged Skipper 18
31 Black Dash 
32 Dun Skipper  2 8
33 Dusted Skipper 
34 Ocola Skipper 24 4
35 Pepper and Salt Skipper
Family PAPILIONIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
36 Pipevine Swallowtail  25 1
37 Zebra Swallowtail  12 19 11 14 1
38 Black Swallowtail  2 14 3 1 3 2
39 Giant Swallowtail  25 7 15
40 Eastern Tiger Swallowtail  11 2 1 1 1 2
41 Spicebush Swallowtail 2 1 4 1 2 2
42 Palamedes Swallowtail
Family PIERIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
43 Cabbage Butterfly=Cabbage White  9 5 2 1 1 1 2 1 7 Nov 7
44 Falcate Orangetip
45 Clouded Sulphur  28 3 1 2 1 4 3 7 Nov 7
46 Orange Sulphur 5 21 2 1 3 2 5 Nov 7
47 Cloudless Sulphur 7 2 1 3 4 5 Nov 7
48 Little Yellow 11
49 Sleepy Orange  21 5 1 1 2 4 Nov 4
Family LYCAENIDAE Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
50 Harvester 
51 American Copper  23 2 6
52 Coral Hairstreak  11
53 Edward's Hairstreak 
54 Banded Hairstreak  25 3
55 Striped Hairstreak
56 Red-banded Hairstreak 3 27 12 2 4
57 Juniper Hairstreak  1
58 Brown Elfin  28 21
59 Pine Elfin 
60 White-m Hairstreak  29 20
61 Gray Hairstreak 10 3
62 Eastern Tailed Blue 3 3 2 1 2 3 7 Nov 7
63 Spring Azure  27 2 4
64 Northern Spring Azure 
65 Summer Azure  31 1 7 1 2
66 Appalachian Azure
Family NYMPHALIDAE
 Subfamily LIBYTHEINAE 		 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Last
67 Snout Butterfly  29 2 1 3 4
Subfamily HELICONIINAE
68 Variegated Fritillary 15 21 2 5 1
69 Great Spangled Fritillary 1 2 12 3
70  Aphrodite 
71  Meadow Fritillary  14 3 12 1 1 1
Subfamily NYMPHALINAE
72 Pearl Crescent 3 1 1 1 2 3 Oct 27
73 Silvery Checkerspot
74 Baltimore  11
75 Question Mark  1 9 21 5
76 E. Comma  9 1 2 11 1 4 1 Oct 6
77 Gray Comma
78 Compton's Tortoiseshell 
79 Mourning Cloak  5 6
80 Milbert's Tortoiseshell 
81 American Painted Lady  30 1 3 12 2 2 23 Oct 23
82 Painted Lady  3 24 15 2 2 1 8 Nov 8
83 Red Admiral  3 2 3 4 2 6 4
84 Buckeye  28 11 1 3 1 7 Nov 7
85 Red-spotted Purple  14 8 11 12 4
86 Viceroy 11 6
Subfamily APATURINAE
87 Hackberry Butterfly/Emperor 17 4 2 3 1
88 Tawny Emperor  12 5
Subfamily SATYRINAE
89 Northern Pearly Eye  11
90 Appalachian (Eyed) Brown  1 1 1 6 Sep 23
91 Little Wood Satyr  20 2 3
92 Common Ringlet 
93 Common Wood Nymph  11
Subfamily DANAINAE
94 Monarch 31 6 2 1 3 1 7 Nov 8
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Monthly Totals 0 0 5 14 28 35 55 48 39 27 11

Yearly butterfly sightings in Berks County, PA
2003 (63)
2004 (63)
2005 (62)
2006 (61)
2007 (64)
2008 (67)
2009 (73)
2010 (80)
2011 (72)
2012 (78)
2013 (74)
No data
2015 (71)
2016 (61)
2017 (62)
2018 (65)
2019 (67)
2020 (68)
2021 (63)
2022 (60)
2023 (58)
2024 (--)
.
Contributors to this year's sightings are: Scott Chambers, Rudy Keller, Sheila Martin, Robert Noll, Rebecca Reppert, Mike Slater, David Sonnen, Todd Underwood, Lois Vedock, Peter and Jane Wolfe, Ryan Woolwine and Karl Gardner.
For Lancaster County, PA butterfly sightings go to Lancaster Butterfly Sightings - 2020.

A site with data on butterfly distributions by county (and photographs) for North America can be found at Butterflies and Moths of NA.   (http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/)

There is a small informal group of local butterfly collectors/observers in Berks Co., Pennsylvania If you are interested in butterflies and would like to meet this group, contact Karl Gardner maintains this page.

Return to Berks County Nature home page.