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Species
Spotlight

Giant Silk
Moth Survey

DUSTED SKIPPER (Atrytonopsis hianna)

Identification
Long, pointed wings, mostly brown fringed. Male is dingy brown above with a few small, white marks on the forewing. Female is brown above with more distinct white spots on forewing. Both are brown below with grey coloration towards the margin and a white basal spot or arc of spots on the hindwing. The Dusted Skipper has a distinctive face mask which is formed by white palps and white eyebrow.

Massachusetts Butterfly Club photographs

Kaufman's Butterflies of North America, page 338
Glassberg's Butterflies Through Binoculars, plate 71

Habitat in Vermont
Variety of open, dry habitats; early successional areas

Host Plant
Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparius).

Adult Food Preferences
Nectar from flowers including Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica), Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), Blackberry (Rubus allegheniensis), Wild Hyacinth (Camassia scilloides), Phlox (Phlox sp.), Vervain (Verbena sp.), and Red Clover (Trifolium pratense).

U.S. Distribution

VBS Distribution


VBS Flight Period
Four records
5/27/2004
6/5/2004
7/6/2005 (2 sightings)

Notes
This distinctive skipper is a southerner. So southern Vermont is its most likely hangout in our state. But start early in the season for this species. Our records (while few) are from May. Males perch on or near the ground during the day to watch for females and fly actively when disturbed (this habit often helps people locate them while walking through grasslands)

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