A lorquin's admiral butterfly rests on a leaf in the South Okanagan.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Kathy Green
June 09, 2025 - 4:00 AM
Spring is in full swing with summer just around the corner and residents in the Okanagan and Kamloops are photographing and identifying a variety of butterfly species.
Butterflies are found everywhere in the province, including in the deserts and grasslands of the Southern Interior.
An anicia checkerspot butterfly in the South Okanagan has a unique pattern on its wings.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Kathy Green
There are between 15 and 20 thousand butterfly species worldwide and over 200 of those live in BC, according to the UBC department of geography.
The biggest threat to butterflies is habitat loss with many species relying on special habitats that are limited and taken over by human development.
Pesticides kill them too and the pesticide of the biggest threat to butterfly populations in the Southern Interior is BTK, an insecticide frequently sprayed over thousands of hectares to manage the invasive and destructive gypsy moth populations.
A swallowtail butterfly perches on blooms in Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Nancy Donnithorne
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With unique wing shapes and colourful patterns, it can be fun to identify butterflies, and here are just a few to look for this summer.
If you have photos of the natural world to share, send them to news@infonews.ca.
A common alpine butterfly is spotted on the ground in the South Okanagan.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Jodi Forster
This butterfly spotted in the Shuswap is called echo azure.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Vanessa Isnardy
This northern blue butterfly in the South Okanagan appears to be sunbathing on a rock.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Jodi Forster
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