Polygonia faunus

Green Comma

There is little that is obviously green about this butterfly, though there are some bluish-green spots on the underside and in strong sunlight the hairs on the body and wings may look slightly greenish. The caterpillar feeds on willow. Winter is spent as an adult. At least two additional species of Polygonia have been recorded in the past from Vancouver Island. Although I have never seen them for certain, this may be partly because I find the Polygonias hard to distinguish in the field, although they cannot be common, for I have searched diligently on likely larval foodplants such as gooseberry.