Observation date: September 04, 2023
Submitted by: Joshua C
Specimen type: Photograph
Observation notes: Seen in a wet area near the dam below Quemado Lake. I noted this in the field as being quite a small duskywing, which made me think it was Persius or Afranius. The fringe is very pale, almost seeming pure white, but I have seen Persius and Afranius with pale fringes in the past (though not this pale). However, it seems a few weeks late for either of those species in NM. I saw you ID'ed Mike Shoop's photo of the same individual on iNat as Juvenal's Duskywing, but that species is apparently medium to large, not small. Of course, it's also easy to be wrong about relative size only looking with the naked eye and with nothing nearby to compare it to, so I look forward to your thoughts on this one.
Status: Resident
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: October 12, 2023
Coordinator notes: Joshua, your detailed field notes are extremely helpful, especially the comment about size (size being hard to evaluate in a photo). I thought Mike's had a white fringe, which steered me away from afranius, but I agree with you that the normal gray fringe can be a rather pale gray. the late date is of no real concern, given our weird weather/climate, so a new late date for afranius! thanks very much for helping to clarify this critter. I'll go back to iNat and offer a new ID.
