Carolina Satyr - Alabama Butterfly Atlas

Butterfly: Wingspan: 1¼ - 1½ inches (3.2 - 3.8 cm). Upperside is brown with no markings. Underside is brown; both wings have many small eyespots rimmed with yellow.

ID Tip: Upper surfaces are plain and unmarked.

Egg: Greenish white orbs deposited singly on host plant

Caterpillar: Pale green with darker green stripes and short yellow hairs. Hind end tails are very short. The head is rounded and does not have the typical horns that are typical of satyr caterpillars.

Chrysalis: Green with two ridges; black dots on each side and along the wing case margins.The black dots near the wing are reportedly absent on Intricate Satyr pupae.

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Carolina Satyrs are butterfly plain Janes and the smallest of Alabama's satyrs. Their muddy-brown hindwings are adorned only with dark brown ripples and modest eyespots. When they bask, their fully extended wings reveal no embellishments. Only swollen forewing veins that function as vibration sensors break the expanse of dull, gray-brown scales.

Carolina Satyrs are common throughout Alabama, especially in moist forested areas. Constantly bobbing and weaving among grassy patches, they rarely rise more than a foot above the ground. Males are constantly searching for potential mates, tirelessly inspecting every nook and cranny for females. Both sexes gain nourishment from rotting fruit, animal droppings, fungi, and tree sap. Like may butterflies that reportedly never nectar at flowers, Carolina Satyrs do sometimes, especially in autumn.

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: Autauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Choctaw, Clarke, Clay, Cleburne, Coffee, Colbert, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Cullman, Dale, Dallas, Dekalb, DeKalb, Elmore, Escambia, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Houston, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Lee, Limestone, Lowndes, Macon, Madison, Marengo, Marion, Marshall, Mobile, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Randolph, Russell, Shelby, St. Clair, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, Washington, Wilcox, Winston

Sightings in the past 5 years
Sightings in the past 5 - 10 years
Sightings more than 10 years ago

High count(s):

170 - Colbert - 8/31/2013
155 - Colbert - 9/1/2013
150 - Colbert - 9/7/2012

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
1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4
	1						4	16	67	145	361	464	590	895	946	752	649	191	362	83	164	456	368	317	322	236	289	468	608	699	1363	1272	757	322	794	536	334	245	114	100	40	24	4	2	3		1

A variety of woodland habitats

Various grasses are reported throughout the range.

Native grasses in the landscape support the caterpillars of several butterfly species, including Carolina Satyrs.

Carolina Satyr (Hermeuptychia sosybius) Photos

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.