The Pearl Crescent, Phyciodes tharos, is a small butterfly with a wingspan of only 1 1/2 inches at most. It can be found throughout Florida in moist, open areas.
Plant asters in your garden to attract Pearl Crescents. The female will lay up to 200 eggs on the underside of the aster’s leaves where the caterpillars will feed. Adults sip nectar from a wide variety of flowers including milkweed, Spanish needle, and dogbane.
Pearl crescents tend to fly low to the ground where they will land on a rock or shrub.
Photo Credit; Aymee Laurain
