Taxiles Skipper
Poanes taxiles (W.H. Edwards, 1881)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Hesperiinae
Identification: Male narrow black borders; underside of forewing with slightly darkened tip and outer margin; underside of hindwing with darkened base and outer margin. Female: Upperside is dark orange-brown with pale orange patches on the forewing and central hindwing. Underside of hindwing is violet-brown with a pale band of spots and a patch of gray scales near the outer margin.
Wing Span: 1 1/4 - 1 11/16 inches (3.2 - 4.3 cm).
Life History: Males perch in sunlit openings on leaves about 3-5 feet above the ground. They appear to defend their territory and may keep a perch for as long as a week. Courtship usually occurs in the afternoon. Females lay eggs singly under the host leaves. Caterpillars feed on leaves and make shelters of silk-tied leaves.
Flight: One brood from mid-June to August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Grasses including bluegrass (Poa), wheatgrass (Agropyron), orchardgrass (Dactylis), wildrye (Elymus), and bentgrass (Agrostis).
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Woodland openings, stream valleys, forest meadows.
Range: Western South Dakota and north-central Nebraska south through the southern Rocky Mountains and foothills to central 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.
BAMONA Shop
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 299 verified sightings
Observation date: Jul 07, 2024
Submitted by: bonfrey
Region: La Plata County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Nov 17, 2024
Observation date: Jul 07, 2024
Submitted by: bonfrey
Region: La Plata County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Nov 17, 2024
Observation date: Jul 25, 2024
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Pennington County, South Dakota, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jul 31, 2024
Observation date: Jul 25, 2024
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Pennington County, South Dakota, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jul 31, 2024
Observation date: Jul 14, 2024
Submitted by: JudyLY
Region: Otero County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 23, 2024
Observation date: Jul 09, 2024
Submitted by: Cactuswren1976
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 10, 2024
Observation date: Jun 27, 2024
Submitted by: Cactuswren1976
Region: Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jun 29, 2024
Observation date: Jul 09, 2023
Submitted by: anithompson
Region: Apache County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Nov 08, 2023
Observation date: Jul 15, 2023
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: El Paso County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 17, 2023
Observation date: Aug 14, 2017
Submitted by: Stefan Kreitmeier
Region: Utah, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Sep 12, 2023
Observation date: Jul 09, 2020
Submitted by: Robb Hannawacker
Region: San Juan County, Utah, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Sep 11, 2023
Observation date: Jul 15, 2023
Submitted by: Joshua C
Region: Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 31, 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 20, 2023
Submitted by: Marta Reece
Region: Lincoln County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 22, 2023
Observation date: Jun 30, 2023
Submitted by: bonfrey
Region: Colfax County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 22, 2023
Observation date: Jul 05, 2023
Submitted by: DeepSkyKelly
Region: Union County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 05, 2023
Observation date: Jul 03, 2023
Submitted by: twofried
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 04, 2023
Observation date: Jun 24, 2023
Submitted by: Marta Reece
Region: Lincoln County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jun 27, 2023
Observation date: Jul 12, 2022
Submitted by: stevecary
Region: Otero County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jan 02, 2023
Observation date: Jul 19, 2022
Submitted by: J_Martineau
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Dec 13, 2022
Observation date: Aug 02, 2019
Submitted by: John Gibbons
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Oct 11, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: Kanwischerbr
Region: Mesa County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Sep 28, 2022
Observation date: Aug 22, 2022
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Cochise County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 25, 2022
- 1 of 13
- next ›