Least Skipper
Ancyloxypha numitor
Summary
Like other grass skippers, the least skipper rests with its tiny wings in the classic V position. The diminutive green caterpillars feed on various grasses, overwintering as larvae. Adults glean nectar from dainty, low-growing flowers such as wood sorrel and white clover. Although most male skippers perch on grasses to wait for their lady loves to happen by, least skippers fly through tall grass in search of a mate. A female signals acceptance or rejection of a suitor’s advances with wing position–dropping her wings below her body means “no thanks!”
More Details
FAMILY
Hesperiidae (Skippers)
IDENTIFICATION
Average wingspan 0.75-1 inch. Our smallest skipper. Dorsal forewing dark with variable orange; hindwing orange with broad dark edge. Ventral forewing orange at tip and at leading edge. Antennae short and checkered. Underparts whitish.
HABITAT
Wet open areas, marshes, streamsides, and wet meadows
LIFE CYCLE
Females place their yellow eggs singly on host grass blades. Caterpillars live in tubular shelters constructed from grass blades. Chrysalides are formed in a silken case within a grassy tube.
HOST PLANTS
Feeds on many wetland grass species.
Ecosystem Connections
The caterpillars are herbivores that graze on vegetation, and adults serve a role in pollination. All life stages provide food for predators. Because butterflies are so sensitive to toxins and disturbances in the environment, they are good indicators of the overall health of ecosystems.