Common Ringlet (Coenonympha tullia)

Description: A medium sized orange brown butterfly. The upperside is plain, occasionally with a faint ring near the tip of the forewing. The underside of the forewing is orange brown on the basal half and greyish-brown on the outer half, usually with a small eyespot near the apex of the forewing. The underside hindwing is greenish-grey divided by a pale line. Males are darker than females. Common Ringlet is very similar to Maritime Ringlet, as explained in the
description and notes of that species. Wingspan: 27 to 39 mm.

Maritime Distribution: Widespread throughout Maritimes. For Atlas results click here.

Provincial Ranks: NB: S5. NS: S5. PEI: S5.

Flight Period: Double brooded most years. Mid June to mid July, mid August to early September.

Host Plant: A variety of grasses including Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis).

Notes: Common Ringlet only colonized New Brunswick within the 1970s and the rest of the Maritimes in the early 1990’s. It is now a common species throughout much of the area, found in the grassy margins of roads and trails as well as in fields and meadows. It rarely visits flowers.