Cestus Skipper
Atrytonopsis cestus (W.H. Edwards, 1884)
Family: Hesperiidae
Subfamily: Hesperiinae
Identification: Fringes are checkered. Upperside is dark brown; forewing has large clear spots, hindwing has a short row of 4 spots that are not in line. Underside is lighter brown with upperside spots repeated.
Wing Span: 1 3/8 - 1 1/2 inches (3.5 - 3.9 cm).
Life History: From early morning to around noon, males perch on south-facing slopes of gullies to wait for females.
Flight: Several flights from April-May and August-October.
Caterpillar Hosts: Probably a variety of grasses.
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers including Baccharis and Opuntia.
Habitat: Open woodland and grassy thorn forest.
Range: Rare and local in south-central Arizona, west Texas, and northern Mexico.
Conservation: All populations and their habitats should be conserved wherever found.
NCGR: G1 - Critically imperiled globally because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences, or very few remaining individuals), or because of some factor of its biology making it especially vulnerable to extinction. (Critically endangered throughout its range).
Management Needs: None reported.
Comments: NULL
Get your BAMONA Gear!
Please donate!
We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.
Advertise with us!
Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.
Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 verified sightings
Observation date: May 09, 1981
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Brock & Smith)
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Dec 01, 2012
Observation date: Aug 16, 1981
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Brock & Smith)
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Dec 01, 2012
Observation date: May 07, 1992
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (Jim Brock)
Region: Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Dec 01, 2012
Observation date: Apr 25, 1961
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (H. A. Freeman)
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport (Ken Davenport)
Verified date: Jan 01, 2011
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: BAMONA
Region:
Verified by: BAMONA
Verified date: Sep 06, 2010
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Pima County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Maricopa County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Graham County, Arizona, United States
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004
Observation date: unknown
Submitted by: legacy.reporter
Region: Sonora, Mexico
Verified by: legacy.verifier
Verified date: Dec 31, 2004