| Kingdom: Animalia | 
| Phylum: Arthropoda | 
| Subphylum: Hexapoda | 
| Class: Insecta | 
| Infraclass: Neoptera | 
| Subclass: Pterygota | 
| Order: Lepidoptera | 
| Superfamily: Papilionoidea | 
| Family: Nymphalidae | 
| Subfamily: Danainae | 
| Tribe: Danaini | 
| Genus: Danaus | 
| Subject: Danaus plexippus (Linnaeus, 1758) | 
| Kingdom: Plantae | 
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta | 
| Class: Magnoliopsida | 
| Subclass: Asteridae | 
| Order: Gentianales | 
| Family: Asclepiadaceae | 
| Genus: Asclepias | 
| Subject: milkweed |