Palatka skipper (Euphyes pilatka [W. H. Edwards])
Wing span: 1 3/4 - 2 1/8 inches (4.5 - 5.4 cm).
Identification: Upperside is orange with black borders; male forewing has a black 2-part stigma. Underside of hindwing is dull brown and may have faint pale spots.
Life history: Males perch in depressions in marshes to await receptive females. Caterpillars feed on leaves and live in shelters of rolled leaves.
Flight: Two broods along the Atlantic Coast from May-September; probably three broods in Florida from January-November.
Caterpillar hosts: Sawgrass sedge (Cladium jamaicensis).
Adult food: Nectar of pickerelweed and other plants.
Habitat: Coastal brackish marshes and freshwater marshes.
Range: Immediate coast from southeast Virginia south to the Florida Keys; peninsular Florida; west along the Gulf Coast to southern Mississippi. Strays to northern Maryland and southwest Louisiana.
Conservation: Populations should be conserved wherever found.
The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G3 - Very rare or local throughout its range or found locally in a restricted range (21 to 100 occurrences). (Threatened throughout its range).
