The butterfly is named after Pierre Joseph Michel Lorquin, a French naturalist who came to California from France during the Gold Rush, and made important discoveries on the natural history of the terrain.

[2] The Lorquin's admiral can mostly be found across the Upper Sonoran to the Canadian Zone, east to western Montana and Idaho.

The butterfly resides mostly in forest edges, mountain canyons, parks, streamsides, fencerows, orchards, and groves of cottonwood and poplar.

Usually the butterflies feed on California buckeye, yerba santa, privet, bird droppings, and dung.

Common trees that the larvae feed on include willow (Salix), poplar, cherry (Prunus), cottonwood (Populus), and an assortment of orchard trees, including cherry, apple, and plum.