Dr. Sonia Altizer, head of UGA’s Entomology Department, explains how to read a butterfly — the five families to learn first, how wings make color, and the milkweed cardenolides that make monarchs toxic to birds. Jeremy Rhoden (UF/IFAS, Florida’s census coordinator) then turns it into garden practice: four habitat resources, why “trees host the most,” and a 75%-native planting target.
Week Three of the Great Southeast Pollinator Course. Roughly 20,000 butterfly species exist worldwide, about 200 in the Southeast — but a Xerces study found 22% of U.S. butterfly species disappeared between 2000 and 2020. The census runs August 21–22, 2026.
Educators attending the live session earned 1 PLU. This is the archived recording (no credit).
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Chapters
0:00 Welcome and Introductions
2:00 Sonia Altizer: Butterflies, Her Favorite Group
4:06 The Monarch and a Career in Butterfly Disease
6:52 Why Butterflies Matter: Indicators and Icons
9:18 Lepidoptera, Wing Scales, and the Dust Myth
11:11 How Butterfly Wings Make Color
12:42 Butterfly Diversity of the Southeast
15:26 20,000 Species Worldwide; Butterfly vs. Moth
19:05 Five Butterfly Families to Learn First
20:53 Common Southeastern Species and Host Plants
24:01 The Swallowtail Mimicry Complex
25:48 ID Resources: BAMONA and the Seek App
28:11 Life Cycle, Host Plants, and Chemical Defenses
31:15 Lycaenid Caterpillars and Their Ant Partners
33:02 Handoff to Jeremy Rhoden
34:16 Jeremy Rhoden: Four Habitat Resources
36:04 Generalist vs. Specialist Insects
40:38 Host Plants and Feeding Damage
43:44 Clutch Sizes and “Trees Host the Most”
45:36 Xerces Society Native Plant Finder
47:00 Nectar Plants and What Butterflies Prefer
51:05 Native Plants and the 75% Target
53:31 Shelter and Overwintering Habitat
56:19 Water, Minerals, and Puddling
58:50 Threats and Conservation Challenges
1:01:44 Butterfly Declines and Microhabitats
1:04:15 Why Rearing-and-Release Is Discouraged
1:06:00 Building a Butterfly Landscape: Final Tips
1:08:42 Join the Great Southeast Pollinator Census
1:11:15 Q&A: Becoming a Pollinator Ambassador
1:12:41 Q&A: Where Have the Butterflies Gone?
1:15:33 Q&A: Monarch Migration and South Florida
1:19:51 Q&A: Raising Caterpillars for Education
1:23:07 Q&A: Bird Feeders and Chrysalis Placement
1:25:08 Q&A: Mosquito Spraying and Butterflies
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Questions Answered in This Session
How do I tell a butterfly from a moth?
A few rules of thumb, each with exceptions: butterflies have thin antennae with clubbed tips, fly during the day, fold their wings up above the body at rest, and tend to be slimmer and brighter. Moths have feathery or thread-like antennae, fly at dusk or night, rest with wings flat, and run chunkier and duller.
Something is eating my milkweed down to nothing — did I do something wrong?
No. If you plant host plants, feeding is the point. Many host plants tolerate 90 to 95% defoliation and still come back. Don’t spray or treat the plants when the caterpillars show up.
How much of my landscape should be native?
Aim for 75% or more native so natives dominate. Non-natives are fine if they aren’t invasive, but heavy nectar producers like non-native mimosa can pull pollinators away from natives, leaving those natives unpollinated.
Should I raise and release monarchs to boost the population?
Both presenters said no. Rearing a handful — four, five, maybe ten — for education is fine, but raising 100 to 500 for release, or mailing monarchs to Texas, doesn’t help wild survival and can spread disease.
Why am I seeing fewer butterflies?
The observation is real. A study last year found declines above 10% over 20 years — “for every five butterflies we saw 20 years ago, only four remain today” — with over ten times as many species declining as increasing. Xerces found 22% of U.S. species lost between 2000 and 2020.
Does spraying for mosquitoes hurt butterflies, and what can I do?
Aerial spraying has long been suspected of killing caterpillars and butterflies. Ask your county for a no-spray designation, check your state’s spray registry, and cut mosquito larvae directly — dump standing water, use mosquito dunks or floating Bt discs — instead of broadcast fogging.
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Resources
BAMONA — Butterflies and Moths of North America: butterfliesandmoths.org (upload a photo with date and location for a species ID; top 20 butterflies by state)
Seek app / iNaturalist: photo identification for insects, plants, and caterpillars
Xerces Society native-plant finder: search by state, with bloom time, larval-host, and pet-safe indicators
Great Southeast Pollinator Census: August 21–22, 2026
Florida Pollinator Ambassador program (in development): email Jeremy Rhoden to join the interest list
Georgia Pollinator Stewards and Alabama Pollinator Partners: contact your local Extension office
Great Southeast Pollinator Course — UGA Center for Urban Agriculture