List of U.S. state insects facts for kids

Did you know that most states in the United States have a special insect that represents them? These are called state insects! Just like a state bird or a state flower, these insects are chosen to be symbols of the state. Some states even have more than one official insect, like a state insect and a state butterfly! Only two states, Iowa and Michigan, don't have an official state insect.

It's interesting that many of these state insects aren't originally from North America. For example, the European honey bee, European mantis, and the 7-spotted ladybug are all from Europe, but they've been chosen by many different states!

State Insects of the United States

This table shows you all the official state insects, butterflies, and other insect symbols for each state. You'll see their common name, their scientific name (which is called a binomial name), a picture, and the year they became official.

State	State Insect	Scientific Name	Image	Year Chosen
Alabama	Monarch butterfly (state insect)	Danaus plexippus		1989
	Queen honey bee (state agricultural insect)	Apis mellifera		2005
	Eastern tiger swallowtail (state butterfly and mascot)	Papilio glaucus		1989
Alaska	Four-spotted skimmer dragonfly	Libellula quadrimaculata		1995
Arizona	Two-tailed swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio multicaudata		2001
Arkansas	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1973
	Diana fritillary butterfly (state butterfly)	Speyeria diana		2007
California	California dogface butterfly (state butterfly)	Zerene eurydice		1972
Colorado	Colorado hairstreak	Hypaurotis crysalus		1996
Connecticut	European mantis	Mantis religiosa		1977
Delaware	7-spotted ladybug (state bug)	Coccinella septempunctata		1974
	Eastern tiger swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio glaucus		1999
	Stonefly (state macroinvertebrate)	Order Plecoptera		2005
Florida	Zebra longwing (state butterfly)	Heliconius charitonius		1996
Georgia	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1975
	Eastern tiger swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio glaucus		1988
Hawaii	Kamehameha butterfly	Vanessa tameamea		2009
Idaho	Monarch butterfly	Danaus plexippus		1992
Illinois	Monarch butterfly	Danaus plexippus		1975
Indiana	Say's firefly	Pyractomena angulata		2018
Kansas	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1976
Kentucky	European honey bee (state agricultural insect)	Apis mellifera		2010
	Viceroy butterfly (state butterfly)	Limenitis archippus		1990
Louisiana	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1977
	Gulf fritillary (state butterfly)	Dione vanillae		2022
Maine	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1975
	Pink-edged Sulphur (state butterfly)	Colias interior		2023
Maryland	Baltimore checkerspot butterfly	Euphydryas phaeton		1973
Massachusetts	Ladybug	Family Coccinellidae		1974
Minnesota	Monarch butterfly (state butterfly)	Danaus plexippus		2000
	Rusty patched bumblebee (state bee)	Bombus affinis		2019
Mississippi	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1980
	Spicebush swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio troilus		1991
Missouri	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1985
Montana	Mourning cloak butterfly (state butterfly)	Nymphalis antiopa		2001
Nebraska	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1975
Nevada	Vivid dancer damselfly	Argia vivida		2009
New Hampshire	7-spotted ladybug (state insect)	Coccinella septempunctata		1977
	Karner blue butterfly (state butterfly)	Plebejus melissa samuelis		1992
New Jersey	European honey bee (state bug)	Apis mellifera		1974
	Black swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio polyxenes		2014
New Mexico	Tarantula hawk wasp (state insect)	Pepsis grossa		1989
	Sandia hairstreak (state butterfly)	Callophrys mcfarlandi		2003
New York	9-spotted ladybug	Coccinella novemnotata		1989
North Carolina	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1973
	Eastern tiger swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio glaucus		2012
North Dakota	Convergent lady beetle	Hippodamia convergens		2011
Ohio	Ladybug	Family Coccinellidae		1975
Oklahoma	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1992
	Black swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio polyxenes		1996
Oregon	Oregon swallowtail	Papilio oregonius		1979
Pennsylvania	Pennsylvania firefly	Photuris pennsylvanica		1974
Rhode Island	American burying beetle	Nicrophorus americanus		2015
South Carolina	Carolina mantis (state insect)	Stagmomantis carolina		1988
	Eastern tiger swallowtail (state butterfly)	Papilio glaucus		1994
South Dakota	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1978
Tennessee	Common eastern firefly (state insect)	Photinus pyralis		1975
	7-spotted ladybug (state insect)	Coccinella septempunctata		1975
	European honey bee (state agricultural insect)	Apis mellifera		1990
	Zebra swallowtail (state butterfly)	Eurytides marcellus		1995
Texas	Monarch butterfly	Danaus plexippus		1995
Utah	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1983
Vermont	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		1978
	Monarch butterfly (state butterfly)	Danaus plexippus		1987
Virginia	Eastern tiger swallowtail	Papilio glaucus
Washington	Green darner dragonfly	Anax junius		1997
West Virginia	European honey bee (state insect)	Apis mellifera		2002
	Monarch butterfly (state butterfly)	Danaus plexippus		1995
Wisconsin	European honey bee	Apis mellifera		1977
Wyoming	Sheridan's green hairstreak	Callophrys sheridanii		2009

See also

• Lists of United States state insignia