If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? (It’s not pilgrims).
Submit your bug pictures to bugid@missoulabutterflyhouse.org (and remember to include your name, the date, and the location where you took the photo)!
Header photo: Great Basin Bumblebee (Bombus centralis). Kristen McGuire, April 28th, 2025. Orchard Homes, Missoula, MT.
Cabbage White
Pieris rapae
This cosmopolitan butterfly is a prolific breeder, which explains why its range covers most of North America since its accidental introduction in the 1860s. The caterpillars, also known as the “imported cabbageworm,” have a mighty appetite for cruciform vegetables like kale, broccoli, and of course, cabbage. Currently, South America and Antarctica are the only continents without a cabbage white population.
Connie Geiger, April 28th, 2025. Helena, MT
Orange-legged Furrow Bee
Halictus rubicundus
If you’re out looking for bugs and nothing seems to be active, you can always count on a sweat bee to be perched on a dandelion. They sometimes sting if disturbed, though the sting is not very painful. The Schmidt Pain Index describes their sting as “light, ephemeral, almost fruity. As if a tiny spark has singed a single hair on your arm.”
Sue Lowry, April 23rd, 2025. Missoula, MT
Oblong Running Spider
Tibellus oblongus
We believe this may be Tibellus oblongus, one of seven species of Tibellus in North America north of Mexico. Slender crab spiders are ambush hunters, almost always found lying in wait on stems, stalks, or leaves. Female slender crab spiders are dutiful mothers, spinning a flattened egg case and guarding it until the spiderlings emerge.
Lisa Cloo, April 30th, 2025. Turah, MT.
Asher’s Blue
Celastrina asheri
The Asher’s blue is a relatively new species of butterfly, having been described just last year. Once considered a part of the many subspecies of azure butterflies (Celestrina), this blue is moving up. The Asher’s blue is found in western Montana and other areas in the northern Rockies west of the divide. In Montana, they are often found in riparian corridor habitats. As far as is known, caterpillars feed only on red osier dogwood (Cornus sericea) and possibly oceanspray (Holodiscus discolor).
Louise Weaver, April 28th, 2025. Big Creek Trail, Victor, MT
Western Pine Elfin
Callophrys eryphon
The Western Pine Elfin is a nickel-sized butterfly, stunningly banded with rich reddish-brown and black. After overwintering in its chrysalis stage, it emerges and takes to the air from May to June in pine forests. Males are aggressively territorial and perch on small trees or shrubs in forest clearings to await the females. Caterpillars feed on young needles of many pines, including ponderosa and lodgepole. These butterflies are common in the west, but are also found locally in the northern Great Lakes region.
Louise Weaver, April 28th, 2025. Big Creek Trail, Victor, MT.
Green Comma
Polygonia faunus
Green Commas join at least 8 other butterfly species in Montana with the distinction of being hardy little insects. Since they can feed on tree sap and minerals from carrion and dung, they are often found flying when snow is still on the ground – well before the first flowers of the season are in bloom. Preferred habitat includes riparian woodlands and wet meadows.
Connie Geiger, April 25th, 2025. Trout Creek Canyon, Big Belt Mountains, MT.
Speckle-winged Rangeland Grasshopper
Arphia conspersa
Few grasshopper species overwinter as nymphs; they typically overwinter as eggs. But the Speckle-winged Rangeland Grasshopper is one exception, with nymphs emerging around April and maturing into adulthood by early May. When grasshopper takes flight, its wings display bright colors, a method used to startle predators (and occasionally unsuspecting humans).
Connie Geiger, April 25th, 2025. Trout Creek Canyon, Big Belt Mountains, MT.
European Paper Wasp
Polistes dominula
The European paper wasp is a widespread and common species across the globe, expanding its range from Europe to nearly every continent except Antarctica. Their introduction to North America was accidental (as many are) in the 1970s, and the similarity between North American and European climates and habitats allowed the wasp to spread and establish rapidly. Proteins from the wasp’s salivary glands have been cloned and used as a waterproofing agent by aerial drones.
Connie Geiger, April 30th, 2025. Helena, MT
Mourning Cloak
Nymphalis antiopa
Our state butterfly is often the first and last butterfly we see every year. This species overwinters as adults, and is often seen emerging on sunny days to warm up. After the adults breed, they die off, and the following generation takes wing in late summer to early fall.
Connie Geiger, April 25th, 2025. Trout Creek Canyon, Big Belt Mountains, MT.
Milbert’s Tortoiseshell
Aglais milberti
Milbert’s tortoiseshell’s – along with seven other hardy butterfly species in western Montana – have special “antifreeze chemicals” to help them overwinter as adults. After literally chilling out for three months, they may be seen flying as early as mid-February on sunny, 50-degree days. In April, they are actively looking for food and mates. With little to no flowers around, they dine on oozing sap, as well as scat and mud for minerals and salt. All told, they can live nine to ten months.
Connie Geiger, April 25th, 2025. Trout Creek Canyon, Big Belt Mountains, MT.