Butterfly: Wingspan: 1½ - 1¾ inches (3.6 - 4.5 cm). UPPER SURFACE (dorsal) Male forewing has very wide brown border with orange markings in midsection; black stigma hooks upward. Female forewing dark brown with band of yellow orange spots. Hindwings dark brown with elongated orange patch. UNDER SURFACE (ventral) Orange or reddish orange. Hindwing has two yellow orange rays; upper ray does not extend to end of wing.
Egg: Dome-shaped. Initially blue/green; with maturation, color fades to creamy white and two irregularly shaped red rings appear. Laid singly on host blades.
Caterpillar: Blue/green mottled with pale yellow; two narrow dark lines on back. Head pale brown with brown stripe around edge; elongated black spot on "forehead" edged with creamy white. Collar pale green with thin black ring near body. First three pairs of legs (thoracic) pale green. Partially grown larvae overwinter in aerial nests.
Chrysalis: Long, slender, and dark brown.
These large orange skippers are found in open, sunny freshwater wetlands and do not wander far from them. Although widespread, they are not common, and occur in localized colonies. They are one of several fairly large, orange, wetland skippers that include Berry's, Duke's, Bay, Broad-winged, and Aaron's--all of which they resemble. For specific information about how to identify Dion Skippers, click the "Identification Help" link above.
Dion Skippers nectar from a variety of flowers. Pickerel Weed, Common Buttonbush, thistles, and Blue Mistflower are often chosen. Male Dion Skippers can be seen perching or flying through wetland vegetation in search of unmated females. Females deposit eggs on high on sedge blades. Caterpillars silk blades together to form a tubular shelter. They eat the upper edges of the blades. Pupation occurs within a blade shelter that has been heavily reinforced with silk. Third or fourth instar caterpillars overwinter in the tube and complete development the following spring.
Dion Skipper populations concentrate in the southeastern states as well the Great Lakes area. In Alabama, sightings have been scattered across the state.
A dot on the county map indicates that there is at least one documented record of the species within that county. In some cases, a species may be common throughout the county, in others it may be found in only a specific habitat. The High Count information shows the highest numbers recorded for this species as well as when and where they occurred.
The sightings bar graphs depict the timing of flight(s) within each of three geographic regions. Place your cursor on a bar within the graph to see the number of individuals recorded during that period.
The abundance calendar displays the total number of individuals recorded within each week of the month. Both the graphs and the calendar are on based data collection that began in 2000.
The records analyzed here are only a beginning. As more data is collected, these maps and graphs will paint a more accurate picture of distribution and abundance in Alabama. Submit your sightings to albutterflyatlas@gmail.com.
Sightings in the following counties: Baldwin, Bibb, Colbert, Elmore, Greene, Jackson, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Mobile, Perry, Pickens, Randolph, Shelby, Washington
High count(s):
View county names by moving the mouse over a county or view a map with county names
Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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1 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 34 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 |
Usually freshwater wetlands that include bogs, swamps, marshes, beaver ponds, and their edges. Occasionally may occur near brackish water.
Reports from nearby states indicate that host plants include Hairy Sedge (Carex lacustris), Shoreline Sedge (Carex hyalinolepsis, Wool Grass (Scirpus cyperinus) and bulrushes (Scirpus spp.).
The following host(s) have been documented in Alabama:
For more information about these plants, please visit the Alabama Plant Atlas using the links above.
Dion Skippers occasionally move from their wetland habitats to find nectar sources in nearby gardens. Provide a variety of garden worthy, nectar-rich flowers to attract them and other butterflies. These include: Butterfly Milkweed and other milkweeds; Purple Coneflower and other coneflowers; black eyed susans; phloxes; mountain mints; Common Buttonbush; Joe Pye weeds; gayfeathers/blazing stars; Mistflower; ironweeds; asters; and goldenrods.
Click on individual photos to view a larger version that includes photo credits, county, and date.
Photos with comments are indicated by a small, tan dot on the bottom right.