The viceroy can be distinguished from the monarch, however, by one row of white spots within the black fore and hind wing bands.
Viceroys produce three generations per year, and the food habits of each generation differs.
The first brood consume carrion, decaying fungi, and animal dung. Later generations are more often observed at flowers of plants, such as joe-pye weed, aster, Canada thistle, shepherd's needle, and goldenrod. Reproduction Mating occurs in the afternoon, and the female is the egg carrier. She deposits one egg onto the tip of a leaf and chooses only leaves that have not been eaten by other insects. Behavior The viceroy has a slow flap and glide flight pattern.