What you plant — and what you avoid — in the backyard can make a difference to your local butterfly population.

These late-blooming plants native to North America help feed butterflies — especially monarchs-— at a crucial point.

Butterflies feed on nectar from flowers, but a lot of species will only lay their eggs on one or two very specific plants. If you have these in your garden you can help ensure their future survival.

(Adult butterflies feed on plant nectar and are not affected by toxin-containing pollen.) In the earlier Nature paper, Cornell entomologist John Losey used a low toxic strain of pollen. He ...

The owl butterfly may be beautiful, but looks can be deceptive: in reality the species is something of a hooligan. The juice guzzler loves nothing more than a day feeding on fermented fruit and ...

Q: I learned about some local butterflies that spend the winter as adults, coming out in early spring. What can I grow to feed them? A: Some of our earliest-flying butterflies can be seen on mild ...

HABITAT: Bay checkerspot habitat exists on shallow, serpentine-derived soils, which support the plants on which the caterpillars feed. The butterfly's primary host plant is the endangered dwarf ...