Family:Hesperiidae
Sub-Family
Description:
Alternate
Common Names:White-Vein Skipper.
Range:
This species ranges from central Alberta to southern Manitoba, south through
the western halves of the Dakotas to northern Texas, and west to northern Arizona,
Nevada, and in parts of Idaho, Montana, and Colorado. In Idaho, it occurs in the south central part of the state.
Habitat:
It occurs in prairies, sagebrush steppe, and open
woodlands.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
Caterpillars feed on the leaves of grasses including blue grama grass (Boutelous
gracilis).
Adult: Butterflies drink flower nectar.
Ecology:
Caterpillars construct shelters from leaves tied with silk. There are two generations of caterpillars
each year through most of its range, with possibly several in the south and
only one at high elevations. Adults generally fly from late April through September
through most of its range, and from mid-June through July at high elevations.
Occasionally adults may stray into Iowa and Minnesota. The overwintering stage
is unreported.
Reproduction:
Males perch
generally on small hilltops to wait for receptive females. Females lay light
green eggs singly on or near host
plants
Conservation:
![]() |
![]() |
Global Rank: | G5
populations levels are secure, but may be of concern in the future. |
Opler, P. A., H. Pavulaan, and R. E. Stanford. 1995. Butterflies of North America. Jamestown, North Dakota, USA: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Home Page. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/bflyusa.htm (Version 05Nov98).
Opler, P. A. and A. B.Wright. 1999. A Field Guide to the Western Butterflies. Second Edition. Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, New York, USA, 540 pp.
Pyle, R. M. 1981. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Butterflies. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, New York, USA, 924 pp.
Scott, J. A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, USA, 583 pp.
Stanford, R. E. and P. A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western U.S.A. Butterflies (Including Adjacent Parts of Canada and Mexico). Published by authors, Denver, Colorado, USA, 275 pp.