''Ancyloxypha numitor'', the least skipper, is a North American butterfly in the family

Hesperiidae Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were previously placed in a separate superfamily, Hesperioidea; however, the most recent taxonomy ...

. They have a weak,

Satyrinae The Satyrinae, the satyrines or satyrids, commonly known as the browns, are a subfamily of the Nymphalidae (brush-footed butterflies). They were formerly considered a distinct family, Satyridae. This group contains nearly half of the known divers ...

-like flight.Rick Cech and Guy Tudor (2005). ''Butterflies of the East Coast''. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman (2003). ''Butterflies of North America''. Houghton Mifflin, New York, NY.

Description

The least skipper's rounded wings and slender body are distinctive. Their checkered antennae have no hooks. Males lack stigmata. The upper sides of the forewings are dark brownish black sometimes having a patch of orange. The hindwing is orange with a broad dark brownish-black band surrounding the orange area completely. The underside of the wings is orange with the hindwing discal area being a little bit darker. The hindwing veins are whitish. Its wingspan ranges from 17 to 26 mm.Least Skipper
Butterflies of CanadaErnest M. Shull (1987). ''The Butterflies of Indiana''. Indiana Academy of Science.

Similar species

There are four similar species in the least skipper's range. They are the European skipper (''

Thymelicus lineola __NOTOC__ ''Thymelicus lineola'', known in Europe as the Essex skipper and in North America as the European skipper, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. With a wingspan of 2.5 to 2.9 cm, it is very similar in appearance to ...

''), the tropical least skipper ('' Ancyloxypha arene''), the orange skipperling (''

Copaeodes aurantiaca ''Copaeodes aurantiaca'', the orange skipperling, is a species of grass skipper in the butterfly family Hesperiidae Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally ca ...

''), and the southern skipperling (''

Copaeodes minima ''Copaeodes minima'', the southern skipperling, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were ...

''). The European skipper has more pointed wings than the least skipper, the antennae are short and not checkered, and the upper side of the wings is mostly orange or reddish orange with thin black wing margins. Males also have very thin, black stigmata near the costal forewing edge. The tropical least skipper has more orange on the upper side of the wings than the least skipper, and the underside of the wings has very small black marginal spots.Jeffrey Glassberg (2007). ''A Swift Guide to the Butterflies of Mexico and Central America''. Sunstreak Books, Morristown, NJ. The orange skipperling is almost all bright orange on the upper side except for the basal areas being black. Males have black stigmata, and females usually have some black below the forewing cell. The southern skipperling is smaller than the least skipper (it is also the smallest skipper in the United States) and the underside of the hindwing has a white ray which runs the width of the hindwing from the basal area to the margin.

Habitat

The least skipper favors damp or wet habitats with tall grasses.

Flight

Adults may be noticed on the wing from May to September in the north and February to December in the south. It may be seen all year in southern Florida.David C. Iftner, John A. Shuey, and John V. Calhoun (1992). ''Butterflies and Skippers of Ohio''. College of Biological Sciences and The Ohio State University.

Life cycle

To find females, males will patrol through stands of grass. Females lay their eggs singly on the host plant. The pale yellow eggs will soon form an orange-red ring round the middle.James A. Scott (1986). ''The Butterflies of North America''. Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA. The larvae make a nest by rolling up a single blade of grass or by using silk to tie together multiple leaves. The variable larva is grass green with four white pairs of distinct wax glands along the subventral area of the abdomen. The head is either brown or tan and is usually darker in the center. The collar has a white stripe and a black stripe.David L. Wagner (2005). ''Caterpillars of Eastern North America''. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. Thomas J. Allen, Jim P. Brock and Jeffrey Glassberg (2005). ''Caterpillars in the Field and Garden''. Oxford University Press, New York, NY. The cream pupa has brownish colored markings. It overwinters as a larva in the third or fourth instar. It has two to four broods per year.

Host plants

Host plants of the least skipper include: * Cogongrass, '' Imperata'' sp. * Rice cutgrass, ''

Leersia oryzoides ''Leersia oryzoides'' is a species of grass known by the common name rice cutgrass or just cut-grass. It is a widespread grass native to Europe, Asia, and North America and present in many other regions, such as Australia, as an introduced specie ...

'' * Cultivated rice, '' Oryza sativa'' * '' Panicum'' sp. * Bluegrass, ''

Poa ''Poa'' is a genus of about 570 species of grasses, native to the temperate regions of both hemispheres. Common names include meadow-grass (mainly in Europe and Asia), bluegrass (mainly in North America), tussock (some New Zealand species), a ...

'' sp. * '' Setaria'' sp. * Cordgrass, '' Spartina'' sp. * Marsh millet, ''

Zizaniopsis miliacea ''Zizaniopsis miliacea'' is a species of flowering plant in the grass family, Poaceae. It is known by the common names giant cutgrass, water millet, and southern wildrice. The name giant cutgrass refers to the plant's large, rough-edged leaves, ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4753269 Butterflies of North America Ancyloxypha Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius Butterflies described in 1793