Jun 7, 2026
San Jose Municipal Rose Gardeni
Photo attribution
(c) katherinef2, some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Bugs Guide
Bugs Guide for California
Coasts, deserts, mountains, forests, and rich biodiversity
Bug highlights, common sightings, and the best places to look for bugs in California. Use the highlight list to start quickly, then work through the full guide for a broader local view.
Sightings
1,030
Species
166
Active Months
12
Category Overview
Bugs across California
This guide focuses on butterflies, bees, beetles, and other small species within California's wider region guide, making local walks, gardens, and close-up exploring feel richer.
Latest Sightings
Recent insect sightings in California
A recent look at insect sightings across California.
Jun 6, 2026
Venice Canal Historic Districti
Photo attribution
(c) Roberto Daniel Avila, some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Jun 6, 2026
Venice Canal Historic Districti
Photo attribution
(c) Roberto Daniel Avila, some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Jun 6, 2026
Venice Canal Historic Districti
Photo attribution
(c) Roberto Daniel Avila, some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Jun 6, 2026
Venice Canal Historic Districti
Photo attribution
(c) Roberto Daniel Avila, some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Jun 6, 2026
Berkeley Rose Gardeni
Photo attribution
(c) Hydrocycler (Elizabeth Dougherty), some rights reserved (CC BY)
License: CC BY 4.0 ↗
Image may be shown cropped inside the card frame.
Sightings Map
See where insect sightings cluster
Start wide, then zoom in to see where insect sightings cluster across California.
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Top Highlights
Top 5 bugs to look for in California
These bugs are snapped the most across this region.
Bee
102 snaps
Monarch Butterfly
89 snaps
Mourning Cloak
51 snaps
Gray Buckeye
47 snaps
California Tortoiseshell
27 snaps
Places to Start
Best places for bugs in California
These place guides connect well with the bugs covered in this region.
Park61 sightings6 species
California, US
Serra Mesa Community Park
You might spot Nuttall's Scrub Oak and House Finch.
View place guide →
Park49 sightings8 species
California, US
Ohlone Park
You might spot Bee, Monarch, and Anna's Hummingbird.
View place guide →
Park30 sightings12 species
California, US
Regional Parks Botanic Garden
You might spot Pipevine Swallowtail and Western Fence Lizard.
View place guide →
Park30 sightings12 species
California, US
Blake Garden
You might spot Monarch, Bee, and Anise Swallowtail.
View place guide →
Park30 sightings12 species
California, US
Exposition Park Rose Garden
You might spot Eastern Fox Squirrel, Bee, and House Sparrow.
View place guide →
Park30 sightings12 species
California, US
Van Buren Place Historic District
You might spot Eastern Fox Squirrel, Bee, and House Sparrow.
View place guide →
Full Guide
Full California bugs list
The complete ranked list for this guide, ordered by sightings count.
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Bee
Monarch Butterfly
Mourning Cloak
Gray Buckeye
California Tortoiseshell
Asian Lady Beetle
Striped Shore Crab
Ladybug
Flame Skimmer
Painted Lady
Pipevine Swallowtail
Western Tiger Swallowtail
West Coast Lady
Dotted Paropsine Leaf Beetle
Seven-spotted Lady Beetle
Bold Jumping Spider
Garden Snail
Gray Bird Grasshopper
Red Admiral
Spotted Cucumber Beetle
Western Pygmy-Blue
Anise Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Mylitta Crescent
Common Pill Woodlouse
Gray Hairstreak
Gulf Fritillary
Marine Blue
Spotless Lady Beetle
Umber Skipper
Variable Checkerspot
Acmon Blue
California Bumble Bee
California Sister
Great Golden Digger Wasp
Noble False Widow
Pallid-winged Grasshopper
Yellow-faced Bumble Bee
Arizona Mantis
North American Common Water Strider
Pacific Forktail
White-lined Sphinx
Black Tegula
Lorquin's Admiral
Mytilus californianus
Oleander Aphid
Blue-eyed Darner
Fiery Skipper
Large Milkweed Bug
Pale Swallowtail
Twenty-spotted Lady Beetle
American Cockroach
Black Soldier Fly
Diabolical Ironclad Beetle
Dimorphic Flower Longhorn Beetle
Gooseneck Barnacle
Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee
Margined White
Ornate Checkered Beetle
Silver-spotted Tiger Moth
Sonoran Bumble Bee
Spotted Tussock Moth
Sunburst Anemone
Western Black Widow
Blue Dasher
California Flattened Jumping Spider
Checkered White
Common Green Darner
Douglas-Fir Tussock Moth
Echo Azure
European Paper Wasp
Giant Green Anemone
House Centipede
Mediterranean Katydid
Rough Harvester Ant
Valley Carpenter Bee
Vivid Dancer
Western Giant Swallowtail
American Lady
Anthopleura elegantissima
Argentine Ant
Brown Elfin
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
California Oak Moth
Cardinal Meadowhawk
Common Ringlet
Coyote Brush Bud Gall Midge
Eccentric Sand Dollar
Fatal Metalmark
Gray Wall Jumping Spider
Indiscriminate Cuckoo Bumble Bee
Large Yellow Underwing
Monterey Dorid
Small Milkweed Bug
Sylvan Hairstreak
Twelve-spotted Skimmer
Variegated Meadowhawk
Veromessor pergandei
Western Calligrapher
Western Earwig
Western Sculptured Pine Borer
Widow Skimmer
Willow Apple Gall Sawfly
American Winter Ant
Banana Slug
Banded Alder Borer
Black-tailed Bumble Bee
Bronze Beetle
California Broad-necked Darkling Beetle
California Darner
California Gall Wasp
California Harvester Ant
Cancer productus
Carolina Sphinx
Common Drone Fly
Common Rough Woodlouse
Common Whitetail
Dasymutilla californica
Dentate Stink Beetle
Diplolepis polita
Egyptian Bird Grasshopper
Eight-spotted Skimmer
Eurasian Drone Fly
Eurasian Hummingbird Hawkmoth
European Green Crab
European Mantis
European Woolcarder Bee
False Black Widow
Figeater Beetle
Fine striped sweat bee
Fuzzy-Horned Bumble Bee
Giant Mayfly
Goldenrod Crab Spider
Gouty Stem Gall Wasp
Hadrurus arizonensis
Harlequin Bug
Hoary Comma
Honeysuckle gall midge
Horned Nudibranch
Hydaspe Fritillary
Isabella Tiger Moth
Ligated Furrow Bee
Mediterranean red bug
Mossy Chiton
Narcissus Bulb Fly
Orange Sulphur
Pacific Acorn Barnacle
Pismo Clam
Polyphemus Moth
Red Cone Gall Wasp
Southern Masked Chafer
Spined Woodborer
Stretch Spiders
Strongylocentrotus purpuratus
Torpedo Bug
Variable Duskyface Fly
Versute Sharpshooter
Volupial Mint Moth
Western Boxelder Bug
Western Sea Slater
Western Velvety Tree Ant
White-bowed Smoothwing
White-spotted Sawyer
Xestoleptura Crassipes
Yellow-legged Mud-dauber Wasp
Zebra Jumping Spider
Other Guides
Keep exploring California
Switch from bugs to birds and flowers for a broader view of California's wildlife and nature.
