Wild Indigo Duskywing
Erynnis baptisiae (Forbes, 1936)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Pyrginae
Identification: Upperside of forewing is dark on the basal half and lighter on the outer half, with a distinct orange-brown patch at the end of the cell. Male has a costal fold containing yellow scent scales; female has a patch of scent scales on the 7th abdominal segment.
Wing Span: 1 3/8 - 1 5/8 inches (3/5 - 4.1 cm).
Life History: Males perch in open areas on low shrubs to wait for females. Eggs are deposited singly on the host plant. Fully-grown caterpillars from the second brood hibernate.
Flight: Two broods from late April to early June and from July to August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Usually wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria), but also others including wild blue indigo (B. australis), lupine (Lupinus perennis), false lupine (Thermopsis villosa), and crown vetch (Coronilla varia).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers of blackberry, white sweet clover, dogbane, sunflower, crimson clover, and probably others.
Habitat: Open woods and barrens for native hosts. Highways, railroad beds, and upland fields for the introduced crown vetch.
Range: Southern New England and southern Ontario west to central Nebraska; south to Georgia, the Gulf Coast, and southcentral Texas. The Wild Indigo duskywing is rapidly expanding its range and abundance by colonizing plantings of crown vetch along roadways and railroad beds. Comments: The Columbine, Wild Indigo, and Persius dusky wings belong to the "Persius complex," a confusing group of very similar butterflies.
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.
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 361 - 384 of 3021 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 10, 2020
Submitted by: RyanLi
Region: Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 13, 2020
Observation date: Jul 10, 2020
Submitted by: RyanLi
Region: Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 13, 2020
Observation date: Jul 12, 2020
Submitted by: rapids
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 12, 2020
Observation date: Jul 09, 2020
Submitted by: k.d.stutzman
Region: Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 09, 2020
Observation date: Jun 27, 2020
Submitted by: greggra
Region: Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jun 27, 2020
Observation date: Jun 16, 2020
Submitted by: Tommie Rogers
Region: Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: dbruce
Verified date: Jun 18, 2020
Observation date: Jun 03, 2020
Submitted by: 1Carex
Region: Mackinac County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 18, 2020
Observation date: May 24, 2020
Submitted by: rapids
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: May 24, 2020
Observation date: May 16, 2020
Submitted by: Eddie Wyatt
Region: Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: May 16, 2020
Observation date: Apr 28, 2020
Submitted by: tjunderwood
Region: Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: May 04, 2020
Observation date: Apr 28, 2020
Submitted by: Ohio97
Region: Montgomery County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Apr 29, 2020
Observation date: Apr 19, 2020
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Apr 19, 2020
Observation date: Jul 07, 2019
Submitted by: Reiner Jakubowski
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Mar 27, 2020
Observation date: Jul 21, 2005
Submitted by: Tom Dudones
Region: Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Feb 05, 2020
Observation date: Sep 12, 2014
Submitted by: chuck meier
Region: Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Dec 15, 2019
Observation date: Sep 21, 2019
Submitted by: crandal
Region: Medina County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 11, 2019
Observation date: Jul 12, 2015
Submitted by: chuck meier
Region: Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Dec 08, 2019
Observation date: Sep 01, 2017
Submitted by: jjwilson
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Dec 01, 2019
Observation date: Aug 11, 2019
Submitted by: Marsrover
Region: Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Nov 12, 2019
Observation date: Aug 11, 2019
Submitted by: Marsrover
Region: Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Nov 12, 2019
Observation date: Aug 02, 2019
Submitted by: Marsrover
Region: Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Nov 09, 2019
Observation date: Sep 28, 2019
Submitted by: Jim Lowe
Region: Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Oct 07, 2019
Observation date: Sep 24, 2019
Submitted by: Ed Rothwell
Region: Ingham County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Sep 25, 2019
Observation date: Sep 22, 2019
Submitted by: beastbreath
Region: Ingham County, Michigan, United States
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Sep 25, 2019
- ‹ previous
- 16 of 126
- next ›