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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 217 - 240 of 2934 verified sightings
Observation date: Jun 26, 2021
Submitted by: Smalltowngirl
Region: Hawkins County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Aug 21, 2022
Observation date: Aug 03, 2022
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 15, 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: Aug 07, 2022
Submitted by: Olive C
Region: Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 10, 2022
Observation date: Aug 05, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 09, 2022
Observation date: Jul 30, 2022
Submitted by: amparrish15
Region: Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 09, 2022
Observation date: Aug 07, 2022
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Aug 08, 2022
Observation date: May 26, 2022
Submitted by: D Grimes
Region: Brooks County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 08, 2022
Observation date: May 26, 2022
Submitted by: D Grimes
Region: Brooks County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 08, 2022
Observation date: Jul 10, 2022
Submitted by: marina viotto
Region: Oconee County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 08, 2022
Observation date: Jul 01, 2022
Submitted by: HCGregory
Region: Albemarle County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Aug 07, 2022
Observation date: Jul 19, 2022
Submitted by: EddieGarrity
Region: Alexandria, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Aug 07, 2022
Observation date: Jun 13, 2021
Submitted by: scovilsa
Region: Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Aug 07, 2022
Observation date: Feb 22, 2022
Submitted by: Joceb2005
Region: Collier County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 06, 2022
Observation date: Jul 25, 2022
Submitted by: Joshua C
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Aug 04, 2022
Observation date: Jul 25, 2022
Submitted by: Debo Boddiford
Region: Georgia, Screven County, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Aug 04, 2022
Observation date: Aug 01, 2022
Submitted by: Alison Davies
Region: Lexington County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 04, 2022
Observation date: Jul 26, 2022
Submitted by: Marta Reece
Region: San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 31, 2022
Observation date: Jul 24, 2022
Submitted by: billd
Region: Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jul 29, 2022
Observation date: Jul 24, 2022
Submitted by: Mendrola
Region: Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 26, 2022
Observation date: Jul 22, 2022
Submitted by: jhdwelly
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 23, 2022
Observation date: Jul 16, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 14, 2022
Submitted by: Jim Lowe
Region: Tompkins County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 19, 2022
Submitted by: KShell
Region: Dixie County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 19, 2022
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