Russet Skipperling
Piruna pirus (W.H. Edwards, 1878)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Heteropterinae
Identification: Upperside is dark brown; underside is red-brown. Forewing above and below has tiny transparent white spots; hindwing has no markings above or below.
Wing Span: 1 - 1 1/8 inches (2.5 - 2.9 cm).
Life History: Adults rest with their wings closed, but bask with hindwings open wide and forewings open to about 45 degrees. To find receptive females, males patrol above low plants in river courses, streams, and moist ravines. Caterpillars live and feed within nests of webbed leaves. Fully-grown caterpillars hibernate.
Flight: One brood from June-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: Probably grasses such as bluegrass (Poa).
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Moist valley bottoms, forest openings, meadows.
Range: Southeastern Idaho, southern Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G4 - Apparently secure globally, though it might be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Get your BAMONA Gear!
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 170 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 22, 2023
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Summit County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 17, 2023
Observation date: Jul 24, 2023
Submitted by: ncrosbyrd
Region: El Paso County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 09, 2023
Observation date: Jul 21, 2023
Submitted by: sgguthart
Region: Larimer County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 03, 2023
Observation date: Jul 27, 2023
Submitted by: Lyle R
Region: Boulder County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 03, 2023
Observation date: Jul 23, 2023
Submitted by: Jon Kindschy
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 03, 2023
Observation date: Jul 21, 2023
Submitted by: Jon Kindschy
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Jul 25, 2023
Observation date: Jul 23, 2023
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 24, 2023
Observation date: Jul 23, 2023
Submitted by: Janet Ruth
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 24, 2023
Observation date: Jul 06, 2023
Submitted by: janders1
Region: Jefferson County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Jul 23, 2023
Observation date: Jul 12, 2023
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Union County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 20, 2023
Observation date: Jun 13, 2023
Submitted by: MJKrotzer
Region: Apache County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Jul 20, 2023
Observation date: Jun 12, 2023
Submitted by: MJKrotzer
Region: Socorro County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jun 28, 2023
Observation date: Jun 08, 2023
Submitted by: Reneerob17
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jun 09, 2023
Observation date: Jul 14, 2014
Submitted by: Dwaine Wagoner
Region: Wasatch County, Utah, United States
Verified by: RaisingButterfl...
Verified date: Dec 12, 2022
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: chneal
Region: Los Alamos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Sep 18, 2022
Observation date: Jul 29, 2022
Submitted by: Jon Kindschy
Region: Gunnison County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Aug 19, 2022
Observation date: Aug 13, 2022
Submitted by: tjay13
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Aug 13, 2022
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 15, 2022
Observation date: Jul 20, 2022
Submitted by: tjunderwood
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 09, 2022
Observation date: Jul 28, 2022
Submitted by: Janet Ruth
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 01, 2022
Observation date: Jul 23, 2022
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 25, 2022
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 17, 2022
Observation date: Jul 04, 2022
Submitted by: Joshua C
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 05, 2022
Observation date: Jun 24, 2022
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 02, 2022
- 1 of 8
- next ›