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Dun Skipper - Euphyes vestris

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Hesperiidae
Genus: Euphyes

Description

The dun skipper has a wingspan of 1 to 1¼ inches. The uppersides of its wings are dark brown. The underside of its wings are tan. The male has a black stigma on his forewings. A stigma is a patch of scent scales found on the forewing of some species of male butterflies. The female may have light white spots on the uppersides and undersides of her forewings. In some groups of dun skippers, the upperside of their head and thorax may be a yellowish-orange.

Range

map The dun skipper is found from Maine south to Florida and west to Washington and California. It is also found in southern Canada and northern Mexico.

Habitat

The dun skipper is found in moist areas including woodland edges, roadsides, bogs, gardens, meadows, stream edges, and swamp edges.

Diet

The dun skipper caterpillar eats a variety of sedges, including sun sedge and chufa flatsedge. The adult dun skipper is especially attracted to white, pink, or purple flowers including fireweed, common milkweed, purple vetch, lotus, selfheal, peppermint, dogbane, and New Jersey tea.

Life Cycle

In the northern part of its range, the dun skipper has one brood from June to August. In the southern part of its range, it may have two broods between May and September. In the deep south, it may have more than two broods from March through October. The female dun skipper lays single eggs on the leaves of a host grass plant. The larvae bind together leaves from the host plant with silk to make a shelter. The last brood of the season overwinters encased in their leaf homes.