Hackberry Emperor

Here's a Hackberry Emperor Butterfly, one of our brush-footed/four-footed butterflies. This is a big, visually diverse butterfly family that includes many I've discussed before, like the Eastern Comma, Question Mark, Red Admiral, and Monarch. I will confess that I usually don't get a good look at their feet, so their tendency to walk on only 4 of their legs and to have fuzzy legs doesn't typically help me with an ID. But if you've got one in your hand, it could be a good clue.

Unlike more versatile butterflies like the Red Admiral, the Hackberry Emperor uses only the Hackberry Tree as a host plant during its caterpillar stage. It's not uncommon for butterflies and moths to be named after their host plants; the Spicebush Swallowtail, Pipevine Swallowtail, and Snowberry Clearwing also come to mind.

July 25 at Duke Farms

There is a relative to the Hackberry Emperor that looks similar, the Tawny Emperor. Though the colors aren't exactly the same, I've mentioned that coloring can be misleading. But if you see the dark eyespot I've arrowed, you know you've got a Hackberry.

Eyespot differentiates it from a Tawny Emperor

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