North American Butterflies and Moths List

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Butterflies of North America

Butterflies of Florida

Lace-winged Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes aesculapius)
JPG -- species photo

Lace-winged Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes aesculapius [Fabricius])

Wing span: 1 3/16 - 1 1/2 inches (3 - 3.8 cm).

Identification: Fringes are checkered black and white. Upperside of wings is dark brown; forewing has a row of white spots. Underside is dark brown with a yellow or white cobweb pattern.

Life history: Not reported.

Flight: Two broods from March-September.

Caterpillar hosts: Probably cane (Arundinaria).

Adult food: Nectar from flowers including elephant's-foot, sweet pepperbush, blackberry, white clover, selfheal, and dogbane.

Habitat: Moist, dense woods with cane growth.

Range: Eastern Oklahoma and east Texas east to southeast Virginia, south along the Atlantic Coast to northern Florida.

Conservation: Populations should be monitored as habitat is gradually being reduced by drainage and conversion to agriculture.

The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G4 - Apparently secure globally, though it might be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.

Management needs: None reported.

References:


Opler, P. A. and G. O. Krizek. 1984. Butterflies east of the Great Plains. Johns 

     Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 294 pages, 54 color plates.



Opler, P. A. and V. Malikul. 1992. A field guide to eastern butterflies. Peterson 

     field guide #4. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston. 396 pages, 48 color plates.



Scott, J. A. 1986. The butterflies of North America. Stanford University Press, 

     Stanford, Calif. 583 pages, 64 color plates.



Stanford, R. E. and P. A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of western USA butterflies including 

     adjacent parts of Canada and Mexico. Denver and Fort Collins, CO. 

Author: Jane M. Struttmann

State and Regional References:


Gerberg, E.J. and Arnett, R.H., Jr.  Florida Butterflies.  Natural Science

     Publications, Inc.  Baltimore, MD.  90 pp.



Kimball, C.P.  1965.  Arthropods of Florida and Neighboring Land Areas - Vol. 1:

     Lepidoptera of Florida.  Div. of Plant Industry, State of Florida Dept. 

     of Agriculture.  Gainesville, FL.  363 pp. 



Minno, M.C. and Emmel, T.C.  1993.  Butterflies of the Florida Keys.  Scientific

     Publishers.  Gainesville, FL.  168 pp.

     

Opler, P.A. 1998. A field guide to eastern butterflies, revised format.

     Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.     



Smith, D.S., Miller, L.D. and Miller, J.Y.  1994.  The Butterflies of the West

     Indies and South Florida.  Oxford Univ. Press.  Oxford, U.K.  264 pp.

Lace-winged Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes aesculapius)
distribution map
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