Species Hermeuptychia sosybius - Carolina Satyr

Classification · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Food · Life Cycle · See Also · Internet References

Another Florida Satyr - Hermeuptychia sosybius

Carolina Satyrs - Hermeuptychia sosybius - male - female

Chewed Carolina Satyr - Hermeuptychia sosybius

Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Superfamily Papilionoidea (Butterflies)

Family Nymphalidae (Brushfooted Butterflies)

Subfamily Satyrinae (Nymphs, Satyrs and Arctic Butterflies)

Genus Hermeuptychia

Species sosybius (Carolina Satyr)

Size

wingspan 32-38 mm

Identification

Adult: dull brown with no eyespots on upperside; underside of wings has a series of yellow-rimmed eyespots along the edge; one spot on underside of forewing is usually slightly larger than the other spots (a feature that distinguishes it from Little Wood Satyr - noted in "See Also" category below)

Range

Southern New Jersey south along the Atlantic Coast to southern Florida; west to southeast Kansas, central Oklahoma, central Texas, and Mexico

(see distribution map at Butterflies and Skippers of North America)

Habitat

grassy places and woodlands

Season

adults fly all year in the far south; April to October in northern part of range

Food

Larvae feed on Broadleaf Carpet Grass (Axonopus compressus) and Centipede Grass (Eremochloa ophiuroides); females in captivity have oviposited on St. Augustine Grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum) and Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis)

Adults feed on tree sap and rotting fruit.

Life Cycle

three generations per year in northern part of range; more than three farther south

See Also

Little Wood Satyr

(Megisto cymela) is very similar but has eyespots on upperside of wings, and underside of forewing has two spots that are much larger than the other spots (not one spot that is slightly larger than the other spots, as in Carolina Satyr)

Internet References

pinned adult images showing upper and lower sides, plus larval foodplants, flight season, habitat (Dale Clark, Texas, dallasbutterflies.com)

pinned adult images plus description, flight season adult and larval food, habitat, distribution, US range map (Butterflies and Skippers of North America, nearctica.com)

Contributed by Hannah Nendick-Mason on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by Robin McLeod
Last updated 7 October, 2006 - 2:59pm

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