Butterfly: Wingspan: 1¼ - 1½ inches (3.2 - 3.8 cm). UPPER SURFACE (dorsal): Drab brown. Unmarked. Males lack androconial scent scales on upper forewing. UNDER SURFACE (ventral): Brown with numerous eyespots on the edges of fore-and hindwings.
Egg: Pale green. Hemispherical.
Caterpillar: Green; covered with tiny white dots; row of small white spots along sides. Head green with no horns. Two short tails on posterior end. Very similar to Intricate Satyr. To date, the only reported difference is a slight variation in overall color: Carolina Satyr caterpillars are blue-green while Intricate Satyr caterpillars tend to be yellow-green. The overwintering stage.
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.
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, 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
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 | 9 | 23 | 95 | 183 | 614 | 612 | 711 | 990 | 1118 | 869 | 733 | 208 | 453 | 110 | 180 | 530 | 430 | 413 | 391 | 271 | 525 | 621 | 815 | 1156 | 1716 | 1550 | 995 | 575 | 985 | 744 | 500 | 325 | 135 | 116 | 46 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
A wide variety of woodland habitats
Various grasses are reported throughout the range.
The following have been documented in Alabama:
For more information about these plants, please visit the Alabama Plant Atlas using the links above.
Native grasses in the landscape support the caterpillars of several butterfly species, including Carolina Satyrs.
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.