Epargyreus clarus

The large silver-white spot on the underside of the hindwing is diagnostic and visible even when wings are folded together over the back at rest. The yellow-orange patch on the forewing and dark brown ground color separate it from similar skippers. Male forewings are more pointed than female. Larvae are distinguished by the orange eye-spot mimicry on the head, black first thoracic segment, and bright orange legs.

Open areas with nectar plants: forest edges, swamps, brushy areas, riparian habitats, fields, and gardens. Prefers lower elevations and areas with partial shade for flight activity.

Southern Canada through most of the United States to northern Mexico. Absent from the Great Basin and western Texas. Range expansion documented in Southern California with new county records.

Adults fly from early to midsummer. One brood per year in the North and West, two in the East, three to four in the Deep South. Overwintering pupae emerge in spring.

Larvae feed on leaves of Fabaceae (legumes), including: Amorpha fruticosa (false indigobush), Amphicarpaea bracteata (American hogpeanut), Apios americana (groundnut), Wisteria frutescens (American wisteria), Clitoria mariana (Atlantic pigeonwings), Desmodium tortuosum (Dixie ticktrefoil), Pueraria montana (kudzu), Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust), Wisteria sinensis (Chinese wisteria), and soybean (Glycine max). Adults use a long proboscis to feed on nectar of blue, red, pink, purple, white, and cream flowers; also mud and animal feces. Rarely visit yellow flowers. Preferred nectar sources include everlasting pea, common milkweed, red clover, buttonbush, blazing star, and thistles.

• Amorpha fruticosa - larval hostfalse indigobush
• Amphicarpaea bracteata - larval hostAmerican hogpeanut
• Apios americana - larval hostgroundnut
• Wisteria frutescens - larval hostAmerican wisteria
• Clitoria mariana - larval hostAtlantic pigeonwings / butterfly pea
• Desmodium tortuosum - larval hostDixie ticktrefoil, introduced
• Pueraria montana - larval hostkudzu, introduced
• Robinia pseudoacacia - larval hostblack locust
• Wisteria sinensis - larval hostChinese wisteria, introduced
• Glycine max - larval hostsoybean, occasional minor pest

Complete metamorphosis with egg, larva, pupa, and adult stages. Females lay single eggs on or near host plants. Larvae progress through five instars, each constructing increasingly complex leaf shelters lashed with silk. First through third instars build simple two-cut shelters on single leaflets; fourth and fifth instars may use multiple leaflets. Larvae take breaks of approximately 30 minutes between construction steps, completing shelters in under 2.5 hours. Pupation occurs within final shelters or in leaf litter. Multivoltine: summer pupal stage lasts 10–14 days; overwintering pupal stage lasts several months. Three or more overlapping generations of hibernating pupae occur in Florida, fewer in northern regions.

Larvae are nocturnal feeders, hiding in silk-lashed leaf shelters during the day. They actively expel frass up to 38 body lengths away using an anal comb, likely to reduce predator detection. When disturbed, larvae regurgitate a greenish defensive chemical. Adults exhibit perching behavior: males defend territories 1–2 meters above ground on branches and tall weeds, darting at passing insects to locate receptive females. Territorial disputes involve swift, acrobatic flight. Adults rest on leaf undersides at night or during hot/cloudy days, hanging upside down with wings folded to expose the silver spot. Flight is rapid and erratic, typically restricted to shaded areas. Adults are diurnal.

Pollinator of diverse flowering plants, though often acts as a nectar thief—probing innermost disk florets (male organs) without contacting outermost florets (female organs), thus failing to pollinate in more than 50% of feedings. Larvae serve as prey for paper wasps (Polistes fuscatus, P. dominula), sphecid wasps (Stictia carolina), and ants (Crematogaster opuntiae). Natural host of Baculovirus, which manipulates larval behavior to facilitate transmission.

Minor pest of beans, soybean, and kidney bean, though damage rarely warrants control measures. Valued as a conspicuous and attractive butterfly in gardens and natural areas. Subject of ecological research on pupal survival, predator avoidance, and plant-insect interactions.

• Other Epargyreus speciesLack the prominent silver-white hindwing spot; E. clarus is the only North American species with this feature.
• Other Hesperiidae skippersSmaller size, different wing patterns, lack the distinctive silver spot and yellow-orange forewing patch combination.

• skipper
• butterfly
• Fabaceae
• leaf shelter
• multivoltine
• nectar thief
• territorial perching
• silver spot
• Hesperiidae
• North America

• BugGuide
• Wikipedia
• GBIF taxonomy match
• iNaturalist taxon
• NCBI Taxonomy
• Catalogue of Life
• Chrysalis Conundrum: Why One Butterfly Species' Pupae Fare Better in Winter Than Summer
• Gelechiidae | Beetles In The Bush
• WGNSS | Beetles In The Bush
• predator avoidance | Beetles In The Bush | Page 2
• economic pests | Beetles In The Bush
• Silver-Spotted Skipper; Epargyreus clarus (Cramer) (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Hesperidae: Pyrginae)
• Supplementary notes on the distribution of Epargyreus clarus in Southern California (Hesperiidae)