# Monarch butterfly (*Danaus plexippus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/monarch-butterfly  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is a species in the family Nymphalidae, order Lepidoptera. It has been recorded in 97 countries, most often in United States, Canada and Australia. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 9 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 97 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Insecta
- order: Lepidoptera
- family: Nymphalidae
- genus: Danaus
- species: *Danaus plexippus* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Danaida plexippus*, *Danaus americanus*, *Danaus archippus*, *Danaus curassavicae*, *Danaus fumosus*, *Danaus leucogyne*, *Danaus megalippe*, *Danaus menippe*, *Danaus misippiformis*, *Danaus nigrippus*, *Danaus nivosus*, *Danaus obliterata*, *Danaus pulchra*, *Papilio archippus*, *Papilio plexippus*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

United States (404951), Canada (18472), Australia (3702), Mexico (3576), New Zealand (1452), Portugal (1429), Spain (785), Colombia (586), Costa Rica (415), Peru (343), Indonesia (272), Guam (165), Papua New Guinea (129), Ecuador (121), Guadeloupe (93), Puerto Rico (90), Martinique (89), Brazil (77), St. Kitts & Nevis (70), Venezuela (63), United Kingdom (59), Guatemala (57), British Virgin Islands (55), Panama (54), Solomon Islands (53), Guyana (44), Vanuatu (42), Dominican Republic (37), Dominica (36), Suriname (33), Trinidad & Tobago (33), Taiwan (32), Tonga (29), New Caledonia (28), France (26), Honduras (26), Cuba (25), Jamaica (23), Fiji (20), India (18), Gibraltar (17), Norfolk Island (17), Nicaragua (16), Barbados (15), Bahamas (15), Nepal (15), Caribbean Netherlands (14), Curaçao (14), Haiti (14), Belize (13), Samoa (13), Réunion (12), U.S. Virgin Islands (12), Aruba (11), Cayman Islands (11), St. Martin (10), Philippines (10), St. Barthélemy (9), Namibia (8), Antigua & Barbuda (7), and 37 more

## Common questions

### How big is the monarch butterfly?

An adult monarch butterfly has a wingspan of 9 cm, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### Where does the monarch butterfly live?

The monarch butterfly has openly licensed sighting records from 97 countries on GBIF. The most records come from United States, Canada, Australia, Mexico and New Zealand. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the monarch butterfly endangered?

The monarch butterfly is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

### What kind of animal is the monarch butterfly?

The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) belongs to the family Nymphalidae in the order Lepidoptera.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/monarch-butterfly