The Large Skipper, Ochlodes sylvanus

The Large Skipper is a bit of a "blunt" butterfly - Skippers often have a moth-like appearance - they don't flutter like other butterflies but zip, skip or buzz from one place to another - hence the name. Large Skippers are usually the first of the group that you notice as they are rather more widespread, and on first sight do appear "mottled" rather than a uniform clear orange.


Description

The first impression is of a small and stocky dark-orange butterfly with pale splodges. This one appears to be a male with the dark sex-brand running diagonally across the fore-wing:

This individual might be a female:

Distribution

Large Skippers can be found in most parts of the parish, in woodland rides or the agricultural areas, wherever there are coarse tufty native grasses, so they are relatively rarely seen in gardens, within the villages at least - but they are occasionally found!

In the UK, Large Skippers are basically found throughout England and Wales, but not in Scotland (although it is moving nearer) or in Ireland. Individual colonies are normally small, except where large areas of rough grass are created, such as in woodland creation areas like White Horse Wood Country Park.


Life cycle

As is normal in the Skipper family, the Hesperiidae, there is only one generation of the adult butterflies in a year, and may be found flying from May to August.

Male Large Skippers are active in hot weather, nectaring, or perching/patrolling for females. Patrolling by the males is generally commonest in the later part of the morning, zipping between likely spots and then slowly searching for females around grass clumps until they are close enough to be smelt. In the afternoon perching, probably on a much-contested low-level leaf in a sunny sheltered spot, is however the commoner activity. The males leap from these vantage points at any passing insect, and if they are passing males the clashing of wings in the resulting combats can be quite easily heard. If the passing insect is a female a courtship flight to a suitable vantage point followed by the courtship process itself.

The female rests a lot while intermittently and carefully laying single eggs, usually in the late afternoon, which may be found usually on the leaves of Cocksfoot, often large clumps in exposed situations.

The eggs hatch in a couple of weeks and the caterpillar eats its eggshell, and then binds the leaf into a tube with silk, from which it periodically emerges to nibble at the leaf edges. The caterpillar is green with a brownish head. It over-winters and emerges to feed further, perhaps binding several leaves together, and then pupation (for about three weeks) takes place eventually in May-June, with the pupa rolled up in a leaf low down on the plant. Thus, the caterpillar stage generally lasts for about 11 months of the year.


Oddities

As the Large Skipper is not found in Ireland and a large number of the smaller islands, it is generally supposed to be a late coloniser across the channel after the last glaciation.


Predator and parasites

No information.