Attributes of Pholisora catullus
Common Sootywing
Pholisora catullus (Fabricius, 1793)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Pyrginae
Identification: Upperside is glossy black with small white spots on outer third of forewing. Female has more white spots on the forewing than the male, and a submarginal row of spots on the hindwing. Underside of forewing repeats the upperside; hindwing is solid black.
Wing Span: 1 - 1 5/16 inches (2.5 - 3.3 cm).
Life History: Adults bask with the wings spread open. To find receptive females, males patrol near the ground in sunny places; mating takes place in the morning and afternoon. Near midday, females lay eggs singly on the tops of host plant leaves. Caterpillars live and feed within shelters of folded leaves. Caterpillars of the second brood overwinter in their silk-lined leaf shelters and pupate within them in the spring.
Flight: Two broods; from May-August in the north, March-November in Texas.
Caterpillar Hosts: Lambsquarters (Chenopodium album), amaranths (Amaranthus), and cockscomb (Celosia).
Adult Food: Nectar from many flowers including dogbane, marjoram, oxalis, white clover, common milkweed, peppermint, cucumber, and melon.
Habitat: Open or disturbed areas such as landfills, vacant lots, gardens, roadsides, fields, and pastures.
Range: Central United States south to central Mexico. Strays and colonizes to southern British Columbia, northern Michigan, southern Quebec, and southern Maine. Does not occur in peninsular Florida.
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.
Taxonomy Notes:
The map below displays all verified sighting records in the BAMONA database for this species. Each record is indicated with a yellow dot. The orange dots on the map provide access to information about the 400 most recently verified sightings of this species. In some instances, there are several records at the same location. Use the table view to access these records.
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The fifty most recently verified sightings are below. See more recently verified sightings of all species.
| Observation Date | Submitter | Region |
Verified Date |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | McKinley County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Cibola County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Catron County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Grant County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Hidalgo County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Luna County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Dona Ana County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Sierra County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Socorro County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Taos County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Colfax County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Union County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Harding County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Quay County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Torrance County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Guadalupe County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Curry County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Roosevelt County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | De Baca County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Lincoln County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Otero County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Chaves County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Eddy County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Lea County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Mora County, New Mexico, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Warren County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Union County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Salem County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Somerset County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Sussex County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Passaic County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Ocean County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Morris County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Hudson County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Essex County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Camden County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Cape May County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Burlington County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Bergen County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details | |
| January 01, 1950 | legacy.reporter | Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States | December 31, 2004 | Details |













