Common buckeyes have a wingspan of 1.7-2.5 inches long with females being larger than males. Both sexes have predominantly brown wings with the forewings having two orange bars on top and white bands towards the tips.

Each wing has two “eyes” on it that are bluish in the center and bordered by orange, white, and magenta. The common buckeye’s undersides are brown during the summer but reddish during the autumn.

The common buckeye is a butterfly named for the bright eye-like markings on their wings. They are found throughout Central America, Mexico, and the United States except in the northwest. Their preferred habitat is open areas with some bare ground and low vegetation. The common buckeye’s ancestry can be traced to Africa where it then diverged into Asia. 

The common buckeye has a short proboscis, which is the organ butterflies use to extract nectar, so they can’t reach the bottom of flowers that are tunnel shaped. In the early life of their butterfly stage, the common buckeye feeds on yellow and red flowers equally before switching to mainly yellow flowers. Yellow coloring can signify more nectar and viability.

The common buckeye may mate year-round or in the summer depending on location. Females lay small, green eggs on a variety of host plants. After 4-14 days, the eggs hatch into mostly black caterpillars.

Common buckeye caterpillars have light patterns across their body, white markings and orange spots along the sides, and spines protruding out that are blue at the base. After 1-2 weeks in the chrysalis stage, a butterfly will emerge.

Common buckeyes are in the Nymphalidae family, which are also known as brush-footed butterflies. This family got their name from only using 4 of their 6 legs for walking while the front 2 are small, brush-like extremities. Besides their feet, members of this family rest with their wings open and have dull underwings like monarch and emperor butterflies.