Aphrissa statira, Statira Sulphur

This might be considered a medium sized butterfly as it is 2 ½ - 3 inches wide.

It is a delicate, sherbet-ty lemon-yellow shade overall. Close-up photographs of the Statira Sulphur show the elegant vein structure of this creature.
This butterfly will come to garden plants.

Data show that the adult Statira Sulphur will nectar on these plants:

Thistle – there are 18 GENERA of thistle native to the U.S. The vast majority are not in cultivation. Echinops is an exception and can be found where viable. A friend of mine, who has the most brilliant mind for botany of anyone I know, specializes on this group of plants. The common name for these plants is descriptive but for identification is truly not useful.

Hamelia patens. The scarlet bush is a perennial native to Florida. It can be grown throughout the south.

Plumbago (leadwort) is naturalized in California, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Florida. There are four naturalized species: Plumbago auriculata, indica, scandens, and zeylanica. The photo here is most likely P. scandens. It is widely cultivated.

Lantana. Twenty-one species and varieties of Lantana are both introduced and naturalized in all the states that border our southern region - Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, as well as South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Utah. Lantana camara and montevidensis are cultivated.

Malvaviscus drummondii. This is an accepted name (some sources refer to it as M. arboreus v. drummondii). It is a shrub with a very interesting blossom and according to the USDA is native to small portions of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, North and South Carolina, and Georgia. It is in cultivation where viable.

Pentas. This perennial is cultivated. Online the most omnipresent specie is P. lanceolata. It is winter hardy in Zones 10-11 and grown as an annual elsewhere. In the Bay Area the one sold is quite diminutive. It will attract butterflies.
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The Natural history museum lists Calliandra and Dalbergia ecastaphyllum as host plants. Butterflies and Moths mentions that the range of the Statira Sulphur includes Texas and south Florida, with strays in Georgia, New Mexico, and Kansas. When the range of Statira Sulphur is overlapped with the range of these two genera, the host plant list becomes quite reasonable:

Dalbergia ecastaphyllum is a Florida native that grows in the southern half of the state in the coastal counties (below 28-degrees latitude).

Of the 197 species of Calliandra, the USDA map show Calliandra is native to portions of California, Texas, and Florida, and to large areas of Arizona and New Mexico. Of the 15 taxa that grow in the U.S., Calliandra haematomma is the only one native to Florida. Calliandra biflora, conferta, eriophylla, humilis, and iselyi are native to Texas. Calliandra eriophylla and humilis are native to New Mexico.
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The photographs shown here are CC, made available through creative commons.