Wild Indigo Duskywing
Erynnis baptisiae (Forbes, 1936)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Pyrginae
Identification: Upperside of forewing is dark on the basal half and lighter on the outer half, with a distinct orange-brown patch at the end of the cell. Male has a costal fold containing yellow scent scales; female has a patch of scent scales on the 7th abdominal segment.
Wing Span: 1 3/8 - 1 5/8 inches (3/5 - 4.1 cm).
Life History: Males perch in open areas on low shrubs to wait for females. Eggs are deposited singly on the host plant. Fully-grown caterpillars from the second brood hibernate.
Flight: Two broods from late April to early June and from July to August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Usually wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria), but also others including wild blue indigo (B. australis), lupine (Lupinus perennis), false lupine (Thermopsis villosa), and crown vetch (Coronilla varia).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers of blackberry, white sweet clover, dogbane, sunflower, crimson clover, and probably others.
Habitat: Open woods and barrens for native hosts. Highways, railroad beds, and upland fields for the introduced crown vetch.
Range: Southern New England and southern Ontario west to central Nebraska; south to Georgia, the Gulf Coast, and southcentral Texas. The Wild Indigo duskywing is rapidly expanding its range and abundance by colonizing plantings of crown vetch along roadways and railroad beds. Comments: The Columbine, Wild Indigo, and Persius dusky wings belong to the "Persius complex," a confusing group of very similar butterflies.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 97 - 120 of 2979 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 09, 2022
Submitted by: Joceb2005
Region: DuPage County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 02, 2022
Observation date: Aug 28, 2022
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 29, 2022
Observation date: Aug 26, 2022
Submitted by: Laurie Sheppard
Region: Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Aug 27, 2022
Observation date: Aug 26, 2022
Submitted by: maryjanzen
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 27, 2022
Observation date: Aug 18, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Aug 03, 2022
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Aug 03, 2022
Submitted by: Robert Gorman
Region: Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Aug 14, 2022
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 18, 2022
Observation date: Aug 09, 2022
Submitted by: joep01
Region: Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Aug 10, 2022
Observation date: Jul 26, 2022
Submitted by: rapids
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 30, 2022
Observation date: Jul 07, 2022
Submitted by: Joceb2005
Region: DuPage County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 28, 2022
Observation date: Jul 15, 2022
Submitted by: mbroen
Region: St. Croix County, Wisconsin, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 20, 2022
Submitted by: barthsm
Region: Erie County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jul 20, 2022
Observation date: Jul 14, 2022
Submitted by: Eric Hartshaw
Region: Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 16, 2022
Observation date: Jul 11, 2022
Submitted by: Anmahapa
Region: Cook County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 15, 2022
Observation date: Jul 13, 2022
Submitted by: OspreyJ
Region: Maryland, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jul 13, 2022
Observation date: Jun 26, 2022
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: BarbSendelbach
Verified date: Jul 12, 2022
Observation date: Jul 07, 2022
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 08, 2022
Observation date: Jul 06, 2022
Submitted by: maryjanzen
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 07, 2022
Observation date: Apr 23, 2021
Submitted by: sam_hartzler
Region: Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jun 25, 2022
Observation date: May 26, 2020
Submitted by: Wild Ideas
Region: Rappahannock County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jun 25, 2022
Observation date: Jun 14, 2022
Submitted by: commentator
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Jun 24, 2022
Observation date: Jun 19, 2022
Submitted by: greggra
Region: Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jun 21, 2022
Observation date: Jul 04, 2018
Submitted by: datilson
Region: Lexington, Virginia, United States
Verified by: drerbium
Verified date: Jun 21, 2022
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