Telicota ternatensis

• Interesting Facts
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Description

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]

Taxonomy

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Similar Species

Members of the genus Telicota

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 0 species and subspecies in this genus:

More Info

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Further Reading

• International catalogue of scientific literature. LondonPublished for the International Council by the Royal Society of London1901-1920 url p. 302.
• Lepidoptera of the British ornithologists' union and Wollaston expeditions in the Snow Mountains, southern Dutch New Guinea. London: Printed by Hazell, Watson & Viney, 1915. url p. 178.
• The Annals and magazine of natural history; zoology, botany, and geology being a continuation of the Annals combined with Loudon and Charlesworth's Magazine of Natural History. London, Taylor and Francis, Ltd. url p. 433.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 17, 2012.

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 7726461
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Lep-189034.0
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 1594702

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]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.