Sandhill skipper facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Sandhill skipper |
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Polites
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P. sabuleti
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| Polites sabuleti (Boisduval, 1852)
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The Sandhill Skipper (Polites sabuleti) is a type of butterfly. It is also sometimes called the saltgrass skipper. This small butterfly is part of the Hesperiidae family. Skippers are known for their quick, darting way of flying.
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Where Sandhill Skippers Live
You can find the Sandhill Skipper in many parts of North America. They live from southern British Columbia and eastern Washington. Their range goes south through California and northern Arizona. They are also found all the way to Baja California in Mexico. To the east, they live in south-eastern Wyoming, central Colorado, and north-eastern New Mexico. Interestingly, they have also been brought to Hawaii by people.
Life Cycle and Food
The Sandhill Skipper is a small butterfly. Its wingspan (the distance from one wingtip to the other) is about 22 to 32 millimeters. That's roughly the size of a large coin.
How Many Generations
In cooler, higher places, these butterflies usually have one generation each year. This means they complete their full life cycle once. Adults fly around from June to August. In warmer, lower areas, they can have several generations. This means they complete their life cycle multiple times a year. You can see adults flying from March to October in these warmer spots.
What They Eat
The baby Sandhill Skippers, called larvae (or caterpillars), love to eat grass. They munch on different kinds of grasses. Some of their favorite snacks include Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) and Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis). They also eat saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) and other types of fescue grass.
Adult Sandhill Skippers have a different diet. They drink nectar from flowers. Nectar is a sweet liquid that gives them energy.
Different Types of Sandhill Skippers
Just like there can be different types of dogs, there are also different types of Sandhill Skippers. These are called subspecies. Subspecies are groups of the same animal that have small differences. These differences often depend on where they live. For example, some subspecies are found only in California. Others might be found in Arizona or Nevada. These small differences help them adapt to their specific environments.
