Looking for a low-maintenance native plant that attracts butterflies? Try the coontie.

In 2017, FLORIDA TODAY ran an article about the Atala butterfly that was previously thought to be extinct but had been discovered again. Since that time, the butterflies have made a resurgence and expanded their range.

The Atala’s primary host plant is our native coontie, Zamia integrifolia, and because its a popular landscape ornamental, the butterfly has made its way up to Brevard County.

The coontie is native to the Florida peninsula where its natural habitat has well-drained soil dominated by pine trees. It is hardy from zones 8B through 11 and can survive winter temperatures as low as 15°F. Samples have been collected from north Florida down to Key West. It's found throughout hammocks and pinelands.

This attractive plant looks more like a palm, eventually growing to three feet tall and three to five feet wide.  The stiff, feather-like leaves are attached to a shortened, thick stem.  The plant produces bright green, soft new leaves at the top of the stem that slowly uncurl, eventually becoming stiff and a glossy dark green.

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The coontie is a primitive plant, like cycads, and grows as either a male or female. Male plants produce a slender cone that releases pollen. Female plants produce a brown cone with a velvety fuzz that covers the seeds.

When the seeds are ripe, the cone breaks open and reveals shiny, orange-red, waxy-coated seeds. A word of warning: These seeds (and all parts of the plant) are toxic to both humans and pets. The toxicity of the colorful red seeds, coupled with their location near the ground, can present a greater danger for small children, dogs, and cats.

If female coontie plants are already established in an area where pets and small children could reach the seeds, remove them when the cone breaks open. Once the seeds are removed, they will no longer pose a threat unless your pet eata the plant. If that is the case, or you want to be safe, remove or don’t plant coonties where your pets have access.

These plants have a high drought tolerance and a moderate salt tolerance, making them a great choice for low-maintenance gardens in both coastal and inland areas. Plant them in well-draining soils, and don’t worry about the light conditions because they can grow in deep shade to full sun. Some of the landscape uses of coontie include foundation planting, mass planting, and as a specimen plant.

The Atala butterfly, Eumaeus atala, typically lays its eggs on the foliage of coontie plants. During her life, a single female Atala can produce several dozen eggs. The white eggs are deposited, singly or in clusters of 5-15 eggs, on new foliage or near the tip of mature foliage. Eggs have even been found on the cones of female plants. The caterpillars are orange-red with seven pairs of yellow spots running down their back, and they prefer to eat the newest growth of the coontie.

When the caterpillar has eaten enough, its last molt creates an orange chrysalis, which hangs from a silken girdle on the underside of the foliage. The caterpillars can withstand the coontie’s toxins, and they even incorporate them into their own tissues.  This results in making both the caterpillars and the butterflies unpalatable to several of their predators, especially birds.

The bright red on the caterpillar and butterfly warns the predators of their toxicity. The Atala butterfly has velvety black wings with a maximum wingspan of only 1.5 inches.  When at rest or feeding on a flower’s nectar, butterflies hold their wings together, where the metallic blue spots are arranged in three bands at the top of the hind wings.  There is also a red spot on the underside of the hind wing adjacent to the abdomen.

The life cycle of the Atala begins with the eggs, which typically hatch in four to five days. Once hatched, the caterpillars eat for approximately 18 days. After all the eating, the caterpillar forms a chrysalis and remains in there for about 10 days, depending on the temperature. Before the adult emerges from the chrysalis, the outer shell of the pupa becomes opaque, and the dark wings of the butterfly are visible inside the chrysalis.

The flight of the Atala butterfly is weak and erratic, so it typically travels close to the ground. The adult butterflies may only live for a week or more. The exact number of generations per year is variable, as all life stages can be observed every month. The butterflies have been known to survive temperatures of 29°F.

Other cycads can also support the Atala caterpillars, such as the new growth of cardboard palms, queen sago, and other species of Zamia. Interestingly, the adult Atala requires specific native nectar plants. Some of the Atala butterfly’s favorite nectar plants include Spanish needles (Bidens alba), Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), Blue porterweed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis), Wild coffee (Psychotria nervosa), Lantana (Lantana involucrata), Live oak (Quercus virginiana), Rouge plant (Rivina humilis), Firebush (Hamelia patens), Fiddlewood (Citharexylum spinosum), Wild lime (Zanthoxylum fagara), Salvia (Salvia coccinea, S. spp.) and Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens.)

The first time I saw an Atala, I watched a large group of them near the intersection of Eau Gallie and Pineapple avenues. The butterflies were feeding on Spanish needles and resting in the canopy of a nearby live oak tree.  At that time, there were colonies of Atala butterflies all along the barrier islands and in Palm Bay. Last year, we had Atala butterflies living around our office in Cocoa, so their range continues to expand. If you would like to support the Atala butterflies, plant coontie and nectar plants in your yard, and then keep your eyes peeled for the small black butterflies that love to rest on the leaves of trees near coonties.

Sally Scalera is an urban horticulture agent and master gardener coordinator for the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agriculture Science.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Low-maintenance gardening, butterfly friendly Florida native plant