Horace's duskywing | skymeadows

Horace's duskywing (Erynnis horatius)

CONFIRMATION STATUS: Confirmed.

FAMILY: Skippers (Hesperiidae)
SUBFAMILY: Spread-wing Skippers (Pyrginae)

IDENTIFICATION: Fringes are brown. Upperside of male forewing is dark
brown with little contrast and no white overscaling. Upperside of female
forewing is light brown with a contrasting pattern and large transparent
spots. Underside of hindwing is usually without 2 spots below the apex.
Male has a costal fold containing yellow scent scales; female has a patch
of scent scales on the 7th abdominal segment.

LIFE HISTORY: To seek females, males perch at the ends of twigs on
hilltops or slopes about 1 foot above the ground. Mating has been
observed around midday; females deposit eggs singly on new growth
of the host. Caterpillars feed on young leaves and rest in leaf nests.
Caterpillars of the last brood hibernate.

FLIGHT: Two broods in the north from April-September, three broods
in the Deep South and Texas from January-November.

WING SPAN: 1 7/16 - 1 15/16 inches (3.6 - 4.9 cm).

CATERPILLAR HOSTS: Both red and white oaks including willow oak
(Quercus phellos), northern red oak (Quercus velutina), scrub oak
(Quercus ilicifolia), water oak (Quercus nigra), post oak (Quercus stellata),
and live oak (Quercus virginiana).

ADULT FOOD: Horace\'s Duskywing visits flower up to about 4.5 feet tall
including dogbane, buttonbush, sneezeweed, goldenrod, peppermint,
boneset, and winter cress.

HABITAT: Open woodlands and edges, clearings, fencerows, wooded
swamps, power-line right-of-ways, open fields, roadsides.
RANGE: Massachusetts west to eastern South Dakota; south through
most of the eastern United States to Florida, the Gulf Coast, and South
Texas; south in the west through southeastern Utah, Colorado,
northeastern Arizona, and New Mexico.

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.