Family:Hesperiidae
Family
Description:
Alternate Common Name: Hairy Duskywing.
Range:
This species has a fairly large western range and a smaller range in the east.
In the west, it ranges from central Alaska south through the western half of
Canada and the northwestern U.S., extending patchily into northern California
and the southwest. In the east, it ranges from Wisconsin west to the north Atlantic
states, and south to the Appalachian Mountains. It occurs throughout most of
Idaho.
Habitat:
It can be found in a variety of open areas, such as grasslands,
open woodlands, and sandy plains.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
In the east, the caterpillar feeds on the leaves of lupine (Lupinus
spp.), and possibly willows (Salix spp.) and poplars (Populus
spp.); in the west, hosts are legumes
including golden banner (Thermopsis spp.) and lotus (Lotus spp.).
Adult:
Butterflies drink flower nectar.
Ecology:
Caterpillars live in nests made from leaves rolled or tied with
silk. In most of
its range, there is one generation of caterpillars each growing season; there
may be two or more in California. Older caterpillars overwinter in a physiological
state called diapause. Adults
fly from April through
June.
Reproduction:
Males perch
to wait for receptive females. Females lay green eggs singly on the undersides
of leaves of the host
plant. The egg turns pink before hatching.
Conservation:
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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.