We can spot adult monarch butterflies immediately by their two pairs of brilliant orange, black-veined wings with white spots towards the edges. Males have a distinguishing black dot near the centre of their hind wing.

Here are the key ways to identify a monarch butterfly and three similar species: Look for l ight orange wings with thick black veins and small white dots along edges of the wings to tell if you’re seeing a monarch. Male monarchs have two black dots on their hindwings.