Bug FAQCalifornia Tortoiseshell
Nymphalis californica · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Nymphalidae
The California tortoiseshell butterfly has a wingspan of about 3 to 7 cm. Caterpillars are black with white spots, hairs, and seven spines on each body segment.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults have orange upper wings marked with black spots and a broad black margin; the underside is a mottled dark brown.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The wingspan ranges from roughly 3.2 cm to 7 cm (about 1¼ to 2¾ inches).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It belongs to the butterfly family Nymphalidae.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The larvae feed on various species of the shrub Ceanothus.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Caterpillars are black with white spots, covered in hairs, and each body segment bears seven spines.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Populations can surge irregularly, leading to occasional explosions in numbers.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 22 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Utah, Montana, Nevada, Wyoming.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What do the adult butterflies look like?
Adults have orange upper wings with black spots and a wide black border, and a mottled dark-brown underside.
Source: Wikipedia
How big are California tortoiseshell butterflies?
Their wingspan is between about 3.2 cm and 7 cm (1¼ to 2¾ inches).
Source: Wikipedia
What do the caterpillars look like?
Caterpillars are black with white spots, covered in hairs, and each segment has seven spines.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Nymphalidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_tortoiseshell
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.