''Polites sonora'', the Sonoran skipper or western long dash,
funet.fi 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 ...

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 ...

. It is found along the Pacific coast of the U.S., reaching Canada only in the extreme southern interior of British Columbia. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

is 25–27 mm.Sonoran Skipper
Butterflies of Canada There is one generation in Canada from mid-July to mid-August in British Columbia. The larvae feed on grasses, possibly Idaho fescue (''

Festuca idahoensis ''Festuca idahoensis'' is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plai ...

''). Adults feed on nectar from flowers including white-flowered thistles.

Subspecies

*''P. s. sonora'' *''P. s. siris'' (Edwards, 1881) – Dog Star skipper *''P. s. utahensis'' (Skinner, 1911) *''P. s. flaviventris'' Austin, 1998

References

External links

Sonoran Skipper
Butterflies and Moths of North America Butterflies of North America Polites (butterfly) Butterflies described in 1872 Taxa named by Samuel Hubbard Scudder {{Hesperiinae-stub