Butterfly Species Listing

There are around 501 species of butterfly found in Europe, including the regions of European Russia and European Turkey. Butterflies select a variety of habitats in which to feed and reproduce, including meadows, grassland, forests and green urban areas. The greatest diversity is found in the three mountain regions of the southern peninsulas, as well as in the islands and boreal areas, which have a high number of endemic species.

The table below lists all the butterfly species found in Europe:

The listing is based on the most recent update: Wiemers, M. et al. (2018). An updated checklist of the European Butterflies (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea). ZooKeys, 811: 9-45. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.811.28712.

The larval foodplant listing shown on the individual species pages comes from: Clarke, H. E. (2024). A checklist of European butterfly larval foodplants. Ecology and Evolution, 14, e10834. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10834. Note that this work does not show preferred foodplants, which can vary from region to region.

The English names of plants are taken from: Stace, C. (2019). New Flora of the British Isles, 4th edition.

Species accounts are taken from: Settele et al. (2008). Climatic Risk Atlas of European Butterflies. BioRisk 1: 1-712. https://doi.org/10.3897/biorisk.1. Note that some range restricted species are not covered.

#	Family	Subfamily	Genus	Species	English Name
4	Papilionidae	Papilioninae	Papilio	machaon	Swallowtail
21	Hesperiidae	Hesperiinae	Gegenes	pumilio	Pygmy Skipper
72	Pieridae	Coliadinae	Gonepteryx	cleopatra	Cleopatra
82	Pieridae	Coliadinae	Colias	crocea	Clouded Yellow
92	Pieridae	Pierinae	Pontia	edusa	Eastern Bath White ^P?
95	Pieridae	Pierinae	Pieris	brassicae	Large White
98	Pieridae	Pierinae	Pieris	rapae	Small White
108	Pieridae	Pierinae	Euchloe	belemia	Green-striped White ^V
134	Lycaenidae	Lycaeninae	Lycaena	phlaeas	Small Copper
148	Lycaenidae	Theclinae	Callophrys	rubi	Green Hairstreak ^V
158	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Leptotes	pirithous	Lang's Short-tailed Blue
160	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Azanus	ubaldus	Desert Babul Blue
162	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Lampides	boeticus	Long-tailed Blue
163	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Cacyreus	marshalli	Geranium Bronze
164	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Celastrina	argiolus	Holly Blue
186	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Zizeeria	karsandra	Dark Grass Blue
196	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Plebejus	argus	Silver-studded Blue ^V
223	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Aricia	agestis	Brown Argus ^P?
231	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Polyommatus	thersites	Chapman's Blue ^P?
237	Lycaenidae	Polyommatinae	Polyommatus	celina	Southern Blue
297	Nymphalidae	Nymphalinae	Vanessa	cardui	Painted Lady
299	Nymphalidae	Nymphalinae	Vanessa	atalanta	Red Admiral
303	Nymphalidae	Nymphalinae	Polygonia	egea	Southern Comma ^V
306	Nymphalidae	Nymphalinae	Nymphalis	polychloros	Large Tortoiseshell ^V
334	Nymphalidae	Danainae	Danaus	chrysippus	Plain Tiger ^M
340	Nymphalidae	Satyrinae	Coenonympha	pamphilus	Small Heath
357	Nymphalidae	Satyrinae	Pararge	aegeria	Speckled Wood
362	Nymphalidae	Satyrinae	Lasiommata	megera	Wall
390	Nymphalidae	Satyrinae	Hipparchia	blachieri	Sicilian Grayling ^V
438	Nymphalidae	Satyrinae	Maniola	jurtina	Meadow Brown

Butterfly Species Listing

Key to colours of English names