Deserted islands are usually rife with insects, and your new island adventure in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is no exception. Bugs can be found and caught all over the island at any point during the year. Bugs can be sold for money, given as gifts, donated to the museum, or displayed as furniture. What you do with them is up to you.
To catch a bug, approach it with your net equipped, taking care to hold down A to sneak up slowly. Once you’re within reach, release the A button and your net will spring forward to grab the critter. If you miss, you might be able to nab the bug by mashing the A button, but sometimes bugs will flee. It takes practice, so don’t be discouraged if you find that you’re scaring away more bugs than you’re catching at first.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons has a total of 80 insects, which is eight more than in Animal Crossing: New Leaf. Below, we go over everything that can affect how and when bugs spawn. You’ll also find a table listing all the bugs we’ve caught so far in both the northern and southern hemispheres, their spawn locations and dates/times, and the number of Bells you get for selling them.
Equipment
In order to catch bugs, you will need a net of some kind. The first net you get in the game is the flimsy net, which can be upgraded to the net at a DIY bench. There are no special limits to what any net can catch in the game–the type of net just determines how many times the tool can be used before breaking. Once your net breaks, just craft a new one at a DIY bench with resources found around the island or purchase a new one at Nook’s Cranny.
Location
Bugs will spawn in different locations and environments. Trees, rivers, flowers, rocks, and light sources all play a role in where bugs will spawn on the island. Many bugs require a specific environmental feature to spawn, so keep that in mind when terraforming and decorating your island–you’ll want at least one tree stump to get some bugs, for example. Also, if you don’t have any trees or flowers, you may find the bug population seriously lacking.
Weather
Weather is the second biggest condition that impacts which bugs appear. In Spring, butterflies won’t appear when it’s raining; instead, bugs like grasshoppers and earth-boring dung beetles will be out in bigger numbers. Rain, snow, and sunny days will all attract different bugs to the island, so taking note of which bugs like certain weather will be the key to completing your collection.
Time And Date
As time in Animal Crossing is synced up with the real world, or whichever date and time you have entered into your Nintendo Switch, the time you play your game matters. New Horizons goes through all the stages of a 24-hour period in real-time, with different bugs appearing at different times. Bugs also vary depending on what month it is, which the game refers to as seasonality. If you want to collect every kind of bug, you will need to play the game at all different hours and throughout the year. The seasonality of bugs changes depending on which hemisphere you chose, too.
For reference, you can always check what time and months the bugs that you have caught will spawn in your Critterpedia.
All The Bugs We’ve Caught So Far
The list below contains the time of year and day, locations, and price for every bug we have found so far in both:
Northern Hemisphere
| Bug | Seasonality | Location | Time | Sell Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Agris Butterfly | Apr – Sept | Flying | 8 AM – 5 PM | 3,000 |
Ant | All year | On rotten fruit and turnips | All day | 80 |
Bagworm | All year | Shake tree | All day | 600 |
Centipede | Sept – June | Hit rocks | 5 PM – 11 PM | 430 |
Citrus Long-Horned Beetle | All year | Tree stump | All day | 350 |
Common Butterfly | Sept – June | Flying | 4 AM – 7PM | 160 |
Cricket | Sept – Nov | Ground | 5 PM – 8 AM | 130 |
Damselfly | Nov – Feb | Flying | All day | 500 |
Darner Dragonfly | Apr – Oct | Flying | 8 AM – 5 PM | 230 |
Diving Beetle | May – Sept | River | 8 AM – 7 PM | 800 |
Earth-Boring Dung Beetle | July – Sept | Ground | All day | 300 |
Emperor Butterfly | Dec – Mar, June – Sept | Flying | 5 PM – 8 AM | 4,000 |
Flea | Apr – Nov | On a flea-infested villager | All day | 70 |
Fly | All year | On rotten fruit or garbage | All day | |
Grasshopper | July – Sept | Ground | 8 AM – 5 PM | 160 |
Hermit Crab | All year | Beach | 7 PM – 8 AM | 1,000 |
Honeybee | Mar – July | Near flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 200 |
Ladybug | Mar – June, Oct | Flowers | 8AM – 5PM | 200 |
Long Locust | Apr – Nov | Ground | 8 AM – 7 PM | 200 |
Madagascan Sunset Moth | Apr – Sept | Flying | 8 AM – 4 PM | 2,500 |
Man-Faced Stink Bug | Mar – Oct | Flowers | 7 PM – 8 AM | 1,000 |
Mantis | Mar – Nov | Flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 430 |
Migratory Locust | Feb – May | Ground | 8 AM – 7 PM | 200 |
Mole Cricket | Nov – May | Underground | All day | |
Monarch Butterfly | Sept – Nov | Flying | 4 AM – 5 PM | 140 |
Mosquito | June – Sept | Flying | 5 PM – 4 AM | 130 |
Moth | All year | Lit windows | 7 PM – 4 AM | 130 |
Orchid Mantis | Mar – Nov | Flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 2,400 |
Paper Kite Butterfly | All year | Flying | 8 AM – 7 PM | 1,000 |
Peaco*ck Butterfly | Mar – June | Near black, blue, or purple flowers | 4 AM – 7 PM | 2,500 |
Pill Bug | Sept – June | Hit rocks | 11 PM – 4 PM | 250 |
Pondskater | May – Sept | River | 8 AM – 7 PM | 130 |
Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing | May – Sept | Flying | 8 AM – 4 PM | 4,000 |
Rainbow Stag | June – Sept | Tree | 7 PM – 8 AM | 6,000 |
Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing | Dec – Feb, Apr – Sept | Near black, blue, or purple flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 2,500 |
Red Dragonfly | Sept – Oct | Flying | 8 AM – 7 PM | 180 |
Rosalia Batsei Beetle | May – June | Tree stump | All day | 3,000 |
Scorpion | TBD | Ground | Night | |
Snail | All year | Rock (rain) | All day | 250 |
Spider | All year | Shake tree | 7 PM – 8 AM | 600 |
Stinkbug | Mar – Oct | Flowers | All day | 120 |
Tarantula | Nov – Apr | Ground | 7 PM – 4 AM | 8,000 |
Tiger Beetle | Feb – Oct | Ground | All day | 1,500 |
Tiger Butterfly | Mar – Sept | Flying | 4 AM – 7 PM | 240 |
Violin Beetle | May – June, Sept – Nov | Tree stump | All day | 450 |
Walker Cicada | Aug – Sept | Tree | 8 AM – 4 PM | 400 |
Walking Leaf | July – Sept | Ground | All day | 600 |
Wasp | All year | Shake tree | All day | 2,500 |
Wharf Roach | All year | Beach (rocks) | All day | 200 |
Yellow Butterfly | Mar – June, Sept – Oct | Flying | 4 AM – 7 PM | 160 |
Southern Hemisphere
| Bug | Seasonality | Location | Time | Sell Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Agris Butterfly | Oct – Mar | Flying | 8 AM – 5 PM | 3,000 |
Ant | All year | Rotten fruit or turnips | All day | 80 |
Bagworm | All year | Shake tree | All day | 600 |
Centipede | Mar – Dec | Hit rocks | All day | 430 |
Citrus Long-Horned Beetle | All year | Tree stump | All day | 350 |
Common Butterfly | Mar – Dec | Flying | 4 AM – 7PM | 160 |
Cricket | Mar – May | Ground | 5 PM – 8 AM | 130 |
Damselfly | May – Aug | Flying | All day | 500 |
Darner Dragonfly | Oct – Apr | Flying | 8 AM – 5 PM | 230 |
Diving Beetle | Nov – Mar | River | 8 AM – 7 PM | 800 |
Earth-Boring Dung Beetle | Jan – Mar | Ground | All day | 300 |
Emperor Butterfly | Dec – Mar, June – Sept | Flying | 5 PM – 8 AM | 4,000 |
Flea | Oct – May | On a flea-infested Villager | All day | 70 |
Fly | All year | On rotten fruit or garbage | All day | |
Grasshopper | Jan – Mar | Ground | 8 AM – 5 PM | 160 |
Hermit Crab | All year | Beach | 7 PM – 8 AM | 1,000 |
Honeybee | Sept – Jan | Near flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 200 |
Ladybug | Apr, Sept – Dec | Flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 200 |
Long Locust | Oct – May | Ground | 8 AM – 7 PM | 200 |
Madagascan Sunset Moth | Oct – Mar | Flying | 8 AM – 4 PM | 2,500 |
Man-Faced Stink Bug | Sept – Apr | Flowers | 7 PM – 8 AM | 1,000 |
Mantis | Sept – Apr | Flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 430 |
Migratory Locust | Feb – May | Ground | 8 AM – 7 PM | 200 |
Mole Cricket | May – Nov | Underground | All day | |
Monarch Butterfly | Mar – May | Flying | 4 AM – 5 PM | 140 |
Mosquito | Dec – Mar | Flying | 5 PM – 4 AM | 130 |
Moth | All year | Lit windows | 7 PM – 4 AM | 130 |
Orchid Mantis | Sept – May | Flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 2,400 |
Paper Kite Butterfly | All year | Flying | 8 AM – 7 PM | 1,000 |
Peaco*ck Butterfly | Sept – Dec | Near black, blue, or purple flowers | 4 AM – 7 PM | 2,500 |
Pill Bug | Mar – Dec | Hit rocks | 11 PM – 4 PM | 250 |
Pondskater | Nov – Mar | River | 8 AM – 7 PM | 130 |
Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing | Nov – Mar | Flying | 8 AM – 4 PM | 4,000 |
Rainbow Stag | Dec – Mar | Tree | 7 PM – 8 AM | 6,000 |
Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing | June – Aug, Oct – Mar | Near black, blue, or purple flowers | 8 AM – 5 PM | 2,500 |
Red Dragonfly | Mar – Apr | Flying | 8 AM – 7 PM | 180 |
Rosalia Batsei Beetle | Nov – Dec | Tree stump | All day | 3,000 |
Scorpion | TBD | Ground | Night | |
Snail | All year | Rock (rain) | All day | 250 |
Spider | All year | Shake tree | 7 PM – 8 AM | 600 |
Stinkbug | Sept – Apr | Flowers | All day | 120 |
Tarantula | May – Oct | Ground | 7 PM – 4 AM | 8,000 |
Tiger Beetle | Aug – Apr | Ground | All day | 1,500 |
Tiger Butterfly | Sept – Mar | Flying | 4 AM – 7 PM | 240 |
Violin Beetle | Mar – May, Nov – Dec | Tree stump | All day | 450 |
Walker Cicada | Feb – Mar | Tree | 8 AM – 4 PM | 400 |
Walking Leaf | Jan – Mar | Ground | All day | 600 |
Wasp | All year | Shake Tree | All day | 2,500 |
Wharf Roach | All year | Beach (rocks) | All day | 200 |
Yellow Butterfly | Mar – Apr, Sept – Dec | Flying | 4 AM – 7 PM | 160 |
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