Learn what a red admiral butterfly looks like and find out what they eat, where they live and what host plants their caterpillars munch.
Identify and Attract a Red Admiral Butterfly
Updated on Mar. 25, 2025
The red admiral butterfly is as striking as it is common, although you may not know much about this pollinator. Here are the most frequently asked questions about the red admiral.
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What Does a Red Admiral Butterfly Look Like?
Adult butterflies are medium-sized with a wingspan of 1 to 2 1/2 inches. The forewing is dark with a red-orange stripe and white dots and the hindwing boasts a red-orange border. The undersides of the wings are mottled brown and gray, perfectly designed for blending in with the trunks of trees when they land.
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Where Do Red Admiral Butterflies Live?
Red admirals are found nearly everywhere in the United States, Mexico and southern Canada, as well as Europe and western Asia. Males are especially active in the afternoon and evening as they look for females.
When cold weather sets in, northernmost butterflies migrate south while those further south find sheltered nooks in trees or rocks to settle into for the winter as they enter diapause (hibernation). These adaptations enable them to survive in a variety of situations.
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What Do Red Admiral Butterflies Eat?
Adult red admiral butterflies do visit flowers but prefer tree sap, fermenting fruit and animal droppings, allowing them to emerge in early spring before nectar flowers may be plentiful. Put out overripe fruit to attract them—bananas or strawberries work well.
Red Admiral Host Plants
Caterpillars only nibble on their host plant, which is nettle. You can find them on stinging nettle, false nettle and wood nettle.
What Do Red Admiral Caterpillars Look Like?
Red admiral caterpillars are mostly black or dark brown and spiky, with or without speckling. They also have yellow markings along their sides. Although the caterpillars look as if they could be painful or toxic, they are in fact perfectly safe to handle.
