# Peacock (*Aglais io*)

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

The peacock (Aglais io) is an insect in the butterflies and moths group, belonging to the family Nymphalidae in the order Lepidoptera. It is also called the peacock butterfly or European peacock butterfly. It is placed in the subfamily Nymphalinae, tribe Nymphalini and genus Aglais, within the superfamily Papilionoidea. The scientific name carries the authority (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 4.5 cm – 6.2 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Scavenger |
| Main food | flowers |
| Habitat | forest, grassland, human_modified, shrubland |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| On the wing | March to October |
| Generations a year | Two |
| Larval food plants | Urticaceae family |
| Conservation status | Not recorded |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

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

Synonyms: *Inachis io*, *Inachis nigrolimbata*, *Inachis oligoio*, *Nymphalis antigone*, *Nymphalis belisaria*, *Nymphalis fischeri*, *Nymphalis griseocellata*, *Nymphalis io*, *Nymphalis ioides*, *Nymphalis sardoa*, *Papilio io*, *Papilio ioides*, *Vanessa astrida*, *Vanessa basi-obscura*, *Vanessa bimaculata*, *Vanessa calorefacta*, *Vanessa cyanosticta*, *Vanessa dyophthalmica*, *Vanessa exmaculata*, *Vanessa exoculata*, *Vanessa extrema*, *Vanessa fulva*, *Vanessa hackrayi*, *Vanessa io*, *Vanessa io ioides*, *Vanessa irenea*, *Vanessa jo*, *Vanessa jocaste*, *Vanessa lacteus*, *Vanessa lucidocellata*, *Vanessa magnimaculata*, *Vanessa marginalis*, *Vanessa marginimaculata-obscura*, *Vanessa meilhani*, *Vanessa mesoides*, *Vanessa mesoides-brunnea*, *Vanessa mesoides-clara*, *Vanessa mesoides-lucidocellata*, *Vanessa mesoides-parvimaculata*, *Vanessa mesoides-sibirica*, *Vanessa mesoides-splendens*, *Vanessa mesoides-viridiocellata*, *Vanessa narses*, *Vanessa nigrifasciata*, *Vanessa nigriocellata*, *Vanessa nigromaculata*, *Vanessa pallens*, *Vanessa pallida*, *Vanessa parvimaculata*, *Vanessa pavo*, *Vanessa prochnovi*, *Vanessa silaceus*, *Vanessa splendens*, *Vanessa teloides*, *Vanessa teloides-brunnea*, *Vanessa teloides-clara*, *Vanessa teloides-lucidocellata*, *Vanessa teloides-nigrifasciata*, *Vanessa teloides-splendens*, *Vanessa transparens*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the peacock?

The peacock is an insect in the butterflies and moths group. It belongs to the order Lepidoptera.

### What is the scientific name of the peacock?

The scientific name of the peacock is Aglais io.

### Who named Aglais io and when?

The authority for Aglais io is written as (Linnaeus, 1758).

### What family does the peacock belong to?

The peacock belongs to the family Nymphalidae, subfamily Nymphalinae and tribe Nymphalini.

### What other names does the peacock have?

The peacock is also called the peacock butterfly and the European peacock butterfly.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Shirey, V., Larsen, E., Doherty, A. et al. (2022) LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits. Scientific Data 9: 382. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01473-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1
- [TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844), CC BY 4.0, 2.0. Chauvier, Y., Adde, A., Bergamini, A. et al. (2025) TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Peacock (Aglais io). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/peacock