Description ²

A large duskywing with prominent apical hyaline spots and strongly mottled forewings, Erynnis juvenalis (Juvenal's Duskywing) is common to abundant in oak woodland on Martha's Vineyard. Easily our most numerous and widespread member of the genus, this butterfly can be found nearly anywhere on the Vineyard. Males are less strongly patterned and show smaller hyaline spots than females. The single annual flight period of this species typically runs from mid-April into mid-June; extreme dates are April 13 and July 5, and freshly eclosed individuals can sometimes be found into about the third week of May. Confusion is possible with E. horatius (Horace's Duskywing), a very rare insect on Martha's Vineyard. Horace's is more strongly sexually dimorphic than Juvenal's (females more strongly patterned, males plainer), and Juvenal's has two pale spots at the apex of the ventral hindwing that Horace's lacks (this feature can be hard to see in the field).

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Matt Pelikan, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Matt Pelikan
2. Adapted by Matt Pelikan from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erynnis_juvenalis

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• BugGuide
• Butterflies and Moths of North America
• CUIC Insect Images
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• Maryland Moths
• Mass Moths
• Moth Photographers Group
• Moths of North Carolina
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• Pacific Northwest Moths

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