North American Butterflies and Moths List

The definitive website on wildbirds & nature

Butterflies of North America

Butterflies of Colorado

Mottled Duskywing (Erynnis martialis)

Mottled Duskywing (Erynnis martialis [Scudder])

Wing span: 1 1/8 - 1 5/8 inches (2.9 - 4.2 cm). 

Identification: Upperside: Brown background and irregular dark
bands contribute to the mottled appearance of both wings. 
Freshly-emerged butterflies have a purplish iridescence.  Male has
a costal fold containing yellow scent scales; female has a patch
of scent scales on the 7th abdominal segment. 

Life history: To wait for females, males perch and patrol on
ridges and hills during the day, sitting on the ground or on tips
of twigs.  Females deposit eggs singly on the host plant.  Fully-grown caterpillars hibernate. 

Range: Massachusetts and southern Ontario west across the Great
Lake states to Minnesota; south to South Carolina, the Gulf
Coast, and central Texas.  Isolated populations in eastern
Wyoming, eastern Colorado, and western South Dakota. 

Conservation: Not usually required. 

The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G4 - Apparently secure
globally, though it might be quite rare in parts of its range,
especially at the periphery.