Butterfly taxonomy is a work in progress, and the last few years have seen some far reaching taxonomic changes that have affected many of the species found in Vermont.

The 1995 checklist of Vermont Lepidoptera listed 89 butterfly species in 48 genera, with two new butterfly species recorded for Vermont. The first Vermont Butterfly Atlas added 10 species to the Vermont checklist. Keen observers added four species since the first atlas, and so far, four new species have been added during the Second Vermont Butterfly Atlas.

The Checklist of the Butterflies (Papilionoidea) of Vermont is now comprised of 120 species in 5 families (Hesperiidae 38, Lycaenidae 27, Nymphalidae 40, Papilionidae 7, Pieridae 8) with 106 native species (two extirpated), 10 vagrant species, and 4 introduced species. Nomenclature follows: Pelham, J. (2025). A Catalogue of the Butterflies of the United States and Canada. Revised Oct. 2025 (unpublished).