Euphyes arpa

Euphyes arpa, the palmetto skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae.

Euphyes arpa

Vulnerable  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Hesperiidae
Genus:
Euphyes
Species:
E. arpa
Binomial name
Euphyes arpa
Synonyms
  • Hesperia arpa Boisduval & Le Conte, [1837]
  • Limochores arpa Dyar, 1903[3]
  • Atrytone arpa

Description

The wingspan is 41–49 mm. The head and front of thorax are bright orange.[4] The upperside of the forewings is reddish yellow with black borders in males and mostly black with a few reddish-yellow patches in females.[4] The underside of the hindwings is bright yellow orange without markings in both males and females.[4]

Ecology

The larvae feed on the fronds of the palm species Serenoa repens, the saw palmetto, and live in silken tubes at the frond base.[4] The species overwinters in the larval stage.[4]

Adults feed on flower nectar from various plants, including the pickerelweeds (genus Pontederia).[4] Adult males perch in sedge marshes to await females.[4]

Habitat is generally moist with low palmetto scrub, including open pine flats, and forested scrub/shrub wetlands, with a necessary abundance of saw palmetto.[1][5]

Range

E. arpa is found in most of Florida, and immediately adjacent Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, possibly established resident only in Florida and Mississippi.[1]

Brood

Adults occur in most of Florida from about March to November, apparently with several broods per year.[1]

Conservation status

The species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List.[6] NatureServe ranks the species with a rounded global conservation status of G3: vulnerable.[1] The species may be extirpated in the Florida Keys.[1]

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References
  1. Schweitzer, DF (2004). "Comprehensive Report Species – Euphyes arpa". NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe Inc. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  2. "Euphyes arpa". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  3. Euphyes at funet
  4. "Butterflies and Moths of North America". Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  5. Allen, Thomas J. (2005). A Field Guide to Caterpillars. Oxford University Press. p. 142. ISBN 978-0-19-803413-1.
  6. "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Retrieved 18 December 2013. (Search for Euphyes arpa to verify non-assessment).
  • Watercolor of larval, chrysalis and adult forms by John Abbott:
Boisduval, Jean; LeConte, John (1833). Histoire générale et iconigraphie des lépidoptè et des chenilles de l'Amérique septentrionale (in French). 1. Paris: Librairie Encyclopédique De Roret. p. 363 (plate 68).


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