Adults fly between June and August, feeding on knapweeds and thistles and hovering close to the ground. Small skippers can be found on rough grassland and sand dunes, along woodland edges and roadside verges, and anywhere else with plenty of grasses. They lay their eggs in grasses, close to the leaf node; the caterpillars feed almost exclusively on Yorkshire-fog, but can be found on other grasses like Cock's-foot.
How to identify The small skipper is russet-brown above, with a dark border and pale fringe to the wing edges. Smaller and plainer than the large skipper, it can be distinguished from the very similar Essex skipper by the brown tips on its antennae - the Essex Skipper has black tips.
Distribution Widespread across England and Wales. Did you know? Small skipper caterpillars hatch in late summer. They have a distinctive "collar", a narrow ring around the body right behind the head. Species in this family are found all around the world. There are about species in North America, and 47 of them occur in Michigan. As usual for Lepidoptera, these species are usually found near their host plants.
Most North American species feed on grasses, but some common species eat shrubs and trees, especially in the bean family. They are most common in meadows and on the edges of woods, but can be found in in many habitats. Like all Moths and Butterflies, this family has complete metamorphosis. See More Information on Butterflies and Moths for an explanation of this. In this family, it is usually the larval stage that survives the winter in cold climates.
Adult skippers are only active during the day, but Skipper caterpillars may feed mainly when it is dark or partly light. Skippers tend not to travel too far, few if any species migrate, the most often stay in the same area their whole lives. However, Polistes Vespidae wasps learn to recognize the shelters to find the larvae and then extract them from the leaf nests Jones et al.
The sphecid wasp, Stictia carolina Fabricius , also sometimes provisions its nests with silver-spotted skipper larvae Hook When disturbed, larvae regurgitate a greenish, bitter-tasting, defensive chemical Minno et al. Insect frass may provide chemical cues for parasitic wasps to the location of prey insects Weiss Many caterpillars that live in leaf nests, including the silver-spotted skipper, forcibly eject their frass for considerable distances to eliminate these chemical cues.
Silver-spotted skipper larvae utilize their anal comb to throw their frass a distance up to 38 body lengths Weiss In addition to predation and parasitism by insects, the larvae are susceptible to a Baculovirus nuclear polyhedrosis virus infection Nordin When mature, the larvae pupate inside the leaf nest.
The pupal stage is the overwintering stage Allen , Minno et al. There are three or more over-lapping generations in Florida — fewer in more northern parts of the distribution Glassberg et al.
The larvae feed on leaves of herbs, vines, shrubs, and trees in the pea family Fabaceae including false indigobush Amorpha fruticosa L. Females will oviposit on least snoutbean Rynchosia minima [L. Figure 4. American hogpeanut, Amphicarpaea bracteata [L.
Figure 5. Dixie ticktrefoil, Desmodium tortuosum [Sw. Figure 6. Kudzu, Pueraria montana [Lour. Figure 7. Black locust, Robinia pseudoacacia L. Figure 8. Chinese wisteria, Wisteria sinensis [Sims] DC. Although it is reported to feed on soybean Glycine max [L.
Minno and Minno and kidney bean Phaseolus vulgaris L. Scott , the silver-spotted skipper is never sufficiently common to be of economic importance and control measures are not required. Description Back to Top Adult: The wing spread is 1. Egg: The eggs are green with a red top. Pupa: The pupa is dark brown with black and white markings. Hosts Back to Top The larvae feed on leaves of herbs, vines, shrubs, and trees in the pea family Fabaceae including false indigobush Amorpha fruticosa L.
But there are always exceptions to the rule. The peculiar eating habits of some caterpillars do sound like made-up stories. Here are ten things hungry caterpillars eat that might surprise you:. The Star-wort caterpillar particularly enjoys munching on the flowers and developing seeds of the Sea Aster plant on saltmarshes. Although lollipops are off the menu, some caterpillars do have a sweet tooth.
The Wax Moth adult makes an enemy of beekeepers by invading hives to lay its eggs. When the caterpillars hatch they feed on the honeycomb, sometimes destroying the hive.
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