Family:Hesperiidae
Sub-Family Description:
Range:
This species is a resident of the extreme southern U.S., from southern California
east to Virginia, south into South America. Each year it colonizes north as
far as southern British Columbia, Idaho, Wyoming, and North Dakota east to Pennsylvania.
Just recently it has been documented in Idaho
in Nez Perce and Lewis Counties, where the Snake River crosses the border into
Washington.
Habitat:
It occurs in open, grassy areas including prairies, fields,
disturbed areas, and along watercourses.
Diet:
Caterpillar:
Caterpillars feed on the leaves of grasses (Poaceae), such as Bermuda grass
(Cynodon dactylon).
Adult: Butterflies drink nectar from a wide variety of flowers belonging
to several families including the milkweed family (Asclepiadaceae), the dogbane
family (Apocynaceae), and the sunflower family (Asteraceae).
Ecology:
Caterpillars live and feed in shelters constructed from leaves rolled and
tied with silk at
the bases of host grasses.
There are several generations of caterpillars in the southern part of its range,
and one to three where it colonizes in the northern part of its range. Adults
generally fly from March to December
in the south and from June to October in the north. The overwintering stage
is unreported.
Reproduction:
Males perch
to wait for receptive females. Females lay light green eggs singly on host grasses.
Conservation:
![]() |
![]() |
Global Rank: | G5
populations are widespread, abundant, and secure. |
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.