Tropical Checkered-Skipper
Pyrgus oileus (Linnaeus, 1767)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Pyrginae
Identification: Upperside is dark brown with pale markings; male forewing has a mat of long blue-gray hairs; hindwing of both sexes has marginal and submarginal bands made up of equal-sized spots. Underside of hindwing is pale, often with a strong brown overlay; not much contrast between bands and ground color.
Wing Span: 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inches (3.2 - 3.8 cm).
Life History: Males perch and patrol for receptive females. Eggs are laid singly on the uppersides of host plant leaves. Caterpillars feed and live in the shelter of a webbed leaf.
Flight: Four to five broods throughout the year in South Texas and Florida.
Caterpillar Hosts: Several plants in the mallow family (Malvaceae) including axocatzin (Sida rhombifolia), mallow (Malva), hollyhock (Althaea rosea), velvet-leaf (Abutilon), and malva loca (Malvastrum).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers of Sidas and small-flowered composites such as shepherd's needles.
Habitat: Open, sunny areas including pastures, brushy fields, wooded trails, thorn-scrub, and roadsides.
Range: Peninsular Florida, the Gulf Coast, and South Texas south through the West Indies, Mexico, and Central America to Argentina.
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
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 494 verified sightings
Observation date: Jan 14, 2020
Submitted by: Mike_56
Region: Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jan 22, 2020
Observation date: Jul 17, 2019
Submitted by: ezeemonee
Region: Santa Rosa County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jan 15, 2020
Observation date: Jan 02, 2020
Submitted by: mellielong
Region: Hillsborough County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jan 02, 2020
Observation date: Dec 25, 2019
Submitted by: TomObrock
Region: Lee County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Dec 29, 2019
Observation date: Nov 03, 2019
Submitted by: ykswosil@gmail.com
Region: Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: John Saba
Verified date: Nov 05, 2019
Observation date: Oct 12, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Jasper County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Oct 19, 2019
Observation date: Oct 06, 2019
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: La Salle Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Oct 14, 2019
Observation date: Oct 10, 2019
Submitted by: Michael Weisensee
Region: Charlotte County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Oct 13, 2019
Observation date: Oct 02, 2019
Submitted by: Michael Weisensee
Region: Sarasota County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Oct 02, 2019
Observation date: Oct 01, 2019
Submitted by: Michael Weisensee
Region: Sarasota County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Oct 01, 2019
Observation date: Sep 29, 2019
Submitted by: Ken Bosso
Region: East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Oct 01, 2019
Observation date: Sep 29, 2019
Submitted by: Michael Weisensee
Region: Sarasota County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 30, 2019
Observation date: Sep 29, 2019
Submitted by: Michael Weisensee
Region: Sarasota County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Sep 30, 2019
Observation date: Sep 06, 2019
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 27, 2019
Observation date: Sep 11, 2019
Submitted by: Jonathan Clark
Region: La Salle Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 27, 2019
Observation date: Sep 14, 2019
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Calhoun County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Sep 25, 2019
Observation date: Sep 22, 2019
Submitted by: Jeff Trahan
Region: St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 24, 2019
Observation date: Sep 10, 2019
Submitted by: vldeloach
Region: Cherokee County, Georgia, United States
Verified by: Mikelchap
Verified date: Sep 15, 2019
Observation date: Sep 24, 2017
Submitted by: Debo Boddiford
Region: Barnwell County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Sep 10, 2019
Observation date: Aug 28, 2019
Submitted by: TomObrock
Region: Lee County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 28, 2019
Observation date: Aug 28, 2019
Submitted by: Brendavent
Region: Collier County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 28, 2019
Observation date: Aug 03, 2019
Submitted by: ezettler
Region: Alachua County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 27, 2019
Observation date: Jul 26, 2019
Submitted by: mellielong
Region: Hillsborough County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 26, 2019
Observation date: Jul 21, 2019
Submitted by: robert.emond
Region: Gadsden County, Florida, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 23, 2019
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