# Soldier butterfly

*Danaus eresimus*

The third North American Danaus, scarce, easily overlooked, and largely confined to south Texas and peninsular Florida.

## What it does on milkweed

Soldier caterpillars feed on milkweeds and, more often, on the twining milkweed vines. Adults nectar widely and, like the queen, males seek pyrrolizidine alkaloids from withered heliotrope.

## How to recognize it

Brown like a queen but with softer, paler wing veining and a distinctive pale patch across the hindwing underside. Best confirmed with a photograph rather than a glance.

## Where and when

South Texas and southern Florida, occasionally straying north along the Gulf.

## Should you do anything about it?

A record worth reporting. If you think you have one, photograph the underside of the hindwing.

### Is the soldier butterfly rare?

In the United States, yes: it reaches only the far south of Texas and Florida. Across the American tropics it is common.

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Source: https://milkweedusa.com/wildlife/soldier-butterfly/ — Milkweed USA, CC BY 4.0.