Horace's Duskywing
Erynnis horatius (Scudder & Burgess, 1870)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Pyrginae
Identification: Fringes are brown. Upperside of male forewing is dark brown with little contrast and no white overscaling. Upperside of female forewing is light brown with a contrasting pattern and large transparent spots. Underside of hindwing is usually without 2 spots below the apex. Male has a costal fold containing yellow scent scales; female has a patch of scent scales on the 7th abdominal segment.
Wing Span: 1 7/16 - 1 15/16 inches (3.6 - 4.9 cm).
Life History: To seek females, males perch at the ends of twigs on hilltops or slopes about 1 foot above the ground. Mating has been observed around midday; females deposit eggs singly on new growth of the host. Caterpillars feed on young leaves and rest in leaf nests. Caterpillars of the last brood hibernate.
Flight: Two broods in the north from April-September, three broods in the Deep South and Texas from January-November.
Caterpillar Hosts: Both red and white oaks including willow oak (Quercus phellos), northern red oak (Q. velutina), scrub oak (Q. ilicifolia), water oak (Q. nigra), post oak (Q. stellata), and live oak (Q. virginiana).
Adult Food: Horace\'s Duskywing visits flower up to about 4.5 feet tall including dogbane, buttonbush, sneezeweed, goldenrod, peppermint, boneset, and winter cress.
Habitat: Open woodlands and edges, clearings, fencerows, wooded swamps, power-line right-of-ways, open fields, roadsides.
Range: Massachusetts west to eastern South Dakota; south through most of the eastern United States to Florida, the Gulf Coast, and South Texas; south in the west through southeastern Utah, Colorado, northeastern Arizona, and New Mexico.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Comments: NULL
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 2340 verified sightings
Observation date: Sep 09, 2019
Submitted by: Argyle
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 09, 2019
Observation date: Sep 05, 2019
Submitted by: wlu
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 06, 2019
Observation date: Aug 28, 2019
Submitted by: BLoflin
Region: Georgetown County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 30, 2019
Observation date: Aug 28, 2019
Submitted by: Brendavent
Region: Collier County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 28, 2019
Observation date: Aug 25, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Colleton County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 28, 2019
Observation date: Aug 19, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 21, 2019
Observation date: Aug 19, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 21, 2019
Observation date: Aug 18, 2019
Submitted by: katrohrer
Region: Charlotte County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 18, 2019
Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: Argyle
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 16, 2019
Observation date: Aug 09, 2019
Submitted by: Loret_in_Florida
Region: Osceola County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 14, 2019
Observation date: Jul 25, 2018
Submitted by: Eric Wood
Region: Boone County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 12, 2019
Observation date: Aug 12, 2019
Submitted by: Robert Nelson
Region: Marion County, Arkansas, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 12, 2019
Observation date: Jul 28, 2019
Submitted by: Joe C Adams
Region: Georgia, United States, White County
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 10, 2019
Observation date: May 16, 2019
Submitted by: momsavang
Region: Harris County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 09, 2019
Observation date: Jul 24, 2019
Submitted by: Laura Clay
Region: Muscogee County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 09, 2019
Observation date: Aug 06, 2019
Submitted by: Robert Nelson
Region: Marion County, Arkansas, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 06, 2019
Observation date: Jul 27, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Jasper County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 02, 2019
Observation date: Jul 29, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 02, 2019
Observation date: Jul 30, 2019
Submitted by: Argyle
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Jul 22, 2019
Submitted by: robert.emond
Region: Jefferson County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 01, 2019
Observation date: Jul 29, 2019
Submitted by: GLG
Region: Walton County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 30, 2019
Observation date: Jul 30, 2019
Submitted by: Argyle
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 30, 2019
Observation date: Jul 27, 2019
Submitted by: Sara Patton
Region: Athens County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 28, 2019
Observation date: Jul 24, 2019
Submitted by: wlu
Region: Brevard County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 24, 2019
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