Sandhill Skipper
Polites sabuleti (Boisduval, 1852)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Hesperiinae
Identification: Common and quite variable. Upperside of male is yellow-orange with dark toothed borders and a sinuous stigma on the forewing. Upperside of female has heavier dark markings and almost transparent light spots; no stigma. Underside of the hindwing in both sexes is yellow-tan with yellow veins, dark chevrons between the veins at the outer margin, and dark spots at the vein ends.
Wing Span: 7/8 - 1 1/4 inches (2.2 - 3.2 cm).
Life History: To watch for females, males perch all day in low grassy areas. Females deposit eggs singly on the host or on nearby plants. Caterpillars feed on leaves and take shelter in nests of tied leaves. Chrysalids hibernate.
Flight: One flight from June-August at high elevations; several flights from March-October in the south and at low elevations.
Caterpillar Hosts: Various grasses including Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon), bluegrass (Poa pratensis), desert salt grass (Distichlis spicata var. stricta), sand lovegrass (Eragrostis trichodes), rough bentgrass (Agrostis scabra), Idaho fescue (Festuca idahoensis), and alpine fescue (Festuca brachyphylla).
Adult Food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Alkali grasslands, moist meadows, lawns, salt marshes, sand dunes, sagebrush flats, and alpine fell-fields.
Range: Southern British Columbia and eastern Washington south through California and northern Arizona to Baja California; east to southeastern Wyoming, central Colorado, and northeastern 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.
Comments: NULL
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 503 verified sightings
Observation date: Sep 25, 2024
Submitted by: Deantroi
Region: Marin County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Sep 29, 2024
Observation date: Aug 11, 2024
Submitted by: wingz2fly
Region: Spokane County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Aug 13, 2024
Observation date: Jul 16, 2024
Submitted by: mcvaugh
Region: Contra Costa County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 18, 2024
Observation date: Jul 06, 2024
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Washoe County, Nevada, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 11, 2024
Observation date: May 01, 2024
Submitted by: mcvaugh
Region: Contra Costa County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 07, 2024
Observation date: May 11, 2024
Submitted by: camflies
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: May 12, 2024
Observation date: Sep 26, 2023
Submitted by: Christian.Nunes
Region: Boulder County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Dec 05, 2023
Observation date: Oct 16, 2023
Submitted by: Dobber31
Region: Contra Costa County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 17, 2023
Observation date: Oct 08, 2023
Submitted by: rajanrao
Region: Alpine County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 12, 2023
Observation date: Oct 04, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 09, 2023
Observation date: Oct 04, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Kern County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 09, 2023
Observation date: Oct 05, 2023
Submitted by: hasfitz5
Region: Santa Barbara County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 09, 2023
Observation date: Aug 06, 2023
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: Santa Barbara County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 18, 2023
Observation date: Jul 21, 2023
Submitted by: cklindsey
Region: Walla Walla County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Aug 10, 2023
Observation date: Jul 30, 2023
Submitted by: camflies
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 04, 2023
Observation date: Jul 31, 2023
Submitted by: cklindsey
Region: Walla Walla County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Aug 03, 2023
Observation date: Sep 30, 2022
Submitted by: cklindsey
Region: Walla Walla County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: May 28, 2023
Observation date: Aug 05, 2017
Submitted by: Mark Salvato
Region: Mono County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Feb 10, 2023
Observation date: Aug 04, 2022
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: San Miguel Island County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 13, 2022
Observation date: Sep 18, 2022
Submitted by: MAKI
Region: San Miguel Island County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Oct 11, 2022
Observation date: Sep 06, 2020
Submitted by: Paul Prappas
Region: British Columbia, Canada
Verified by: Paul Prappas
Verified date: Sep 07, 2022
Observation date: Aug 14, 2022
Submitted by: Patricia12
Region: Ventura County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Jul 12, 2022
Submitted by: dharlette
Region: Alameda County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 19, 2022
Observation date: Jul 12, 2022
Submitted by: dharlette
Region: Alameda County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 19, 2022
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