Fiery Skipper

This diminutive little Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus) was kind enough to stay very still on the Mexican Bush Sage (Salvia leucantha) so I could get this wonderful close-up picture.

Fiery Skippers have very short antenna and a scattering of spots on their underwings. Males have more orange on the upperwing and females are dark brown with an irregular orange band. In the family of grass skippers, Fiery Skippers are a common sight on lawns and gold courses.

Host plants: Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon), crabgrass (Digitaria), St. Augustine grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum), and other grasses. Larvae have a large, dark head that seems pinched off from the rest of the body. The caterpillars roll the leaves of their host grasses around them and secure the sides closed with strings of caterpillar silk.