dun skipper | skymeadows

dun skipper (Euphyes vestris)

CONFIRMATION STATUS: Confirmed.

FAMILY: Skippers (Hesperiidae)
SUBFAMILY: Grass Skippers (Hesperiinae)

IDENTIFICATION: Upperside of head and thorax is yellow-orange.
Wings are brown-black; male forewing has a black stigma, female
forewing has very small cloudy white spots.

LIFE HISTORY: To find receptive females, males perch in low spots about
3 feet from the ground. Females lay eggs singly on leaves of the host
plants. Caterpillars feed on leaves and make shelters of rolled or tied
leaves. Third-stage caterpillars hibernate, emerge in the spring to
complete their development, and pupate in silken tubes at the base
of the plants.

FLIGHT: One brood from June-early August in the north; two broods
from May-September in the mid-South; several broods from March-
October in the Deep South and Texas.

WING SPAN: 1 1/8 - 1 3/8 inches (2.9 - 3.5 cm).

CATERPILLAR HOSTS: Various sedges including chufa flatsedge (Cyperus
esculentus) and sun sedge (Carex heliophila).

ADULT FOOD: Nectar from white, pink, or purple flowers including
common milkweed, purple vetch, selfheal, peppermint, dogbane, New
Jersey tea, and viper's bugloss.

HABITAT: Wet areas near deciduous woods such as meadows, seeps,
swamp edges, and streams.

RANGE: Nova Scotia west across southern Canada to southern Alberta;
south to Florida, the Gulf Coast, and eastern Texas. Separate
populations in the high plains and Rocky Mountains, and on the
Pacific Coast.

CONSERVATION: Not usually required.

NATURESERVE GLOBAL STATUS: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally,
though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the
periphery.

MANAGEMENT NEEDS: None reported.

SKY MEADOWS OCCURRENCE:

Note: Due to seasonal conditions in this region, occurrence may vary from

year to year. The designation of occurrence may range over two or more

categories and may vary even during a single season.

Key to Checklist

A   Abundant: Easy to see very large numbers of individuals in appropriate habitat
      at proper time of year.
C   Common: Usually each to see good numbers of individuals in appropriate habitat
      at proper time of year.
U   Uncommon: Sometimes found in appropriate habitat and proper time of year,
      usually in low numbers.
O   Occasional: Found in appropriate habitat perhaps only a few times a year, usually
      in low numbers.
R   Rare: Small chance of being found, even in appropriate habitat at proper time of
      year. There are few individuals and may not be present every year.
X   Extirpated: Formerly present, no longer occurs in Sky Meadows Park.