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Euphyes dion

(Dion Skipper)

Overview

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Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Dion Skipper

Description

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Family Hesperiidae

'The Hesperiidae are members of the Superfamily Hesperioidea. Worldwide in distribution, skippers are richest in the tropics. More than 3,500 species are described, with approximately 275 in North America, many of which are found only in Arizona and Texas. Most skippers are small to medium, usually orange, brown, black, white, or gray. A few have iridescent colors. Skippers have large eyes, short antennae (often with hooked clubs), stout bodies, and three pairs of walking legs . Their flight is often rapid, making wing movement appear blurred. Adults of most species have long probicscises and feed on floral nectar, but some also take up nutrients from bird droppings. Males have scent scales found in modified forewing patches. Males of most species locate mates by perching (grass and giant-skippers), though some patrol, especially in the open-winged skippers. Globular eggs are laid singly.

'[1]

Subfamily Hesperiinae

The grass skippers are members of the Family Hesperiidae. Distributed worldwide, they comprise more than 2,000 species, most of which are found in the American tropics. The small to medium-sized adults usually have abruptly angled antennae with an apiculus at the tip . Adults of many temperate species are predominantly orange, while brown is the most common color of the tropical species. Male forewings usually have a brand or stigma with specialized scales . Most species have long proboscises and are avid flower-visitors. Adults flight is rapid, and perching posture is unique: the hindwings are opened at a wider angle than the forewings. Males of most species perch while looking for mates. Caterpillars feed on monocotyledons (grasses and allied plants ) and live in silken leaf nests that sometimes extend underground. Grass skippers typically overwinter as caterpillars within their shelters .[2]

Physical Description

Species Euphyes dion

Upperside of male forewing is dark brown with a central orange area and a black stigma; female forewing is dark brown with light orange spots. Hindwing is dark brown with a wide orange streak. Underside of hindwing is red-brown or orange-brown with 2 yellow-orange streaks running from the base to the margins . (ref. 105096)

Size/Age/Growth

Wing span : 1 7/16 - 1 3/4 inches (3.7 - 4.5 cm). (ref. 105096)

Habitat

This is a wetland species, mainly a freshwater marsh inhabitant. It is found in wet savannas , ditches and canals, marshy lake and pond margins , beaver pond marshes, and (of course ) freshwater to slightly brackish marshes. It is not as associated with forested wetlands as much as the Dukes' or Yehl skippers, though it is often found nectaring on pickerelweed in ditches next to swamps and bottomlands . (ref. 104676)

Swamps, open marshes, and bogs . (ref. 105096)

Biology

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Diet

The foodplants are various sedges (Carex and Scirpus spp. ), which are characteristic of open wetlands. It nectars on many plants , such as buttonbush, pickerelweed, milkweeds, and others. (ref. 104676)

Caterpillar hosts: Various sedges including woolgrass (Scirpus cyperinus), hairy sedge (Carex lacustris), and shoreline sedge (Carex hyalinolepis). (ref. 105096)

Adult food: Nectar from flowers of pickerelweed, sneezeweed, buttonbush, Alsike clover, and others. (ref. 105096)

Reproduction

One brood in the north from July-early August; two broods in the south from May-September. (ref. 105096)

Behavior

Flight period: Two broods in NC; very late May to early July, and mid-August to early October, casually to late October. It is most numerous in mid-June and in the first 10 days of September. (ref. 104676)

Taxonomy

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Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Euphyes

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 16 species and subspecies in this genus:

E. arpa (Palmetto Skipper) · E. bayensis (Bay Skipper) · E. berryi (Berry's Skipper) · E. bimacula (Two-Spotted Skipper) · E. bimacula illinois (Two-Spotted Skipper) · E. conspicua (Black Dash) · E. dion (Dion Skipper) · E. dukesi (Dukes' Skipper) · E. dukesi calhouni (Dukes' Skipper) · E. dukesi dukesi (Dukes' Skipper) · E. pilatka (Palatka Skipper) · E. pilatka klotsi (Palatka Skipper) · E. vestris (Dun Skipper) · E. vestris harbisoni (Dun Skipper) · E. vestris metacomet (Eastern Dun Skipper) · E. vestris vestris (Dun Skipper)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 26, 2008:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/taxonomy?f=19&sci=Hesperiidae&com=Skippers [back]
  2. http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=Stinga&search=Search [back]
Last Revised: 7/22/2012