''Megisto cymela'', the little wood satyr, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

species of the

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 ...

family that occurs in North America.

Description

;Adult The wingspan is 29–48 mm. The forewing has two yellow-rimmed black eyespots on both sides, dorsal and ventral. The hindwing has two spots on the dorsal side but have smaller spots on the ventral. The other all color is light brown. The wood satyr is comparably larger than ''sosybia''. ;Caterpillar The body is light greenish brown with a dark dorsal line and alternating brown and yellowish lateral stripes. The surface of the caterpillar has bumps, these bumps bear short reddish-brown hairs. The head is dirty white while the tail hairs are light gray. The wood satyr is part of the typically Neotropical subtribe

Euptychiina The butterfly subtribe Euptychiina ( Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) is a diverse group within the tribe Satyrini, occurring throughout Central and South America, in addition to a few species known from North America. Euptychiina is a predominantly lo ...

. It can be observed in forests, usually along the edges and in brush-filled openings along cleared forest roads. It has also been observed in grassy areas usually between forested patches. It flies near the ground, twisting between and through grasses, small trees and bushes. Collectors have found it often difficult to capture, though it appears to be a slow flyer at first glance. This butterfly prefers habitat that is open, contains deciduous trees along with marshy areas and possessing brushy cover.

Range and habitat

They are seen in the eastern United States and southeastern

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, from

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

south into

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, west to

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

and

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

. As the name implies the little wood satyr is most commonly seen in woods and shrubby areas.

Life cycle

Adults in the northern portions of their range fly between June and July while their southern populations fly between March and September. Adults have a slow "bouncing" flight but they will rise as far as the top of tall trees. Females lay eggs singly on grass, the fourth-

instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ass ...

caterpillars hibernate.

Larval foods

* '' Dactylis glomerata'' * '' Poa pratensis'' * ''

Eremochloa ophiuroides ''Eremochloa ophiuroides'', or centipedegrass, is a species of grass in the family Poaceae. Used as a warm season lawn grass, it forms thick sods and spreads by stolons. It is medium to light green in color and has a coarse texture with short upr ...

Adult foods

* Plant sap * Aphid honeydew * Rarely

nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...

References

Bibliography

*
"''Megisto'' Hübner, [1819]"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms'' *

External links

Little Wood-Satyr
Butterflies of Canada {{DEFAULTSORT:Megisto Cymela Butterflies of North America Euptychiina Butterflies described in 1777 Taxa named by Pieter Cramer Lepidoptera of Canada Lepidoptera of the United States