Arctic Skipper

The Arctic Skipper is a butterfly from the Hesperiidae family.

It is sometimes confused with the Large Chequered Skipper but is different.

What Does the Arctic Skipper Look Like?

The Arctic Skipper is around 31 millimeters long and the top of the Arctic Skipper is dark brown and has orange at the ends of the wings with spots that are golden.

Underneath the Arctic Skipper is a similar coloring but the front wings are orange and have dark spots instead of gold spots and the back wings have cream colored spots that are outlined with black.

The female Arctic Skipper looks like the male, but she is larger than the male.

Where Does the Arctic Skipper Live?

The Arctic Skipper can be found in Britain, England, Canada, California and even Alaska.

This butterfly likes to live in areas where there are woods and mostly in woodlands that are moisty and damp, but they can also be found close to streams, bogs and in areas that are grasslands.

Some of the Arctic Skippers have even been found in the forest.

Even though it is called the Arctic Skipper, it does not live in the Arctic areas.

Behavior of the Arctic Skipper

The Arctic Skipper male will defend its territories from other butterflies or insects that fly by.

The male will set up its home close to areas where there are nectar flowers and they are careful that other males are not in the area when they settle in.

The Arctic Skipper males usually try to make their homes away from each other, so they do not have to share the female butterflies.

The male Arctic Skipper will find its female when it is flying by and that is how they choose the female.

One interesting thing about the Arctic Skipper is that when it flies it does a type of hopping motion.  This allows the Arctic Skipper to be safe and to be close to the flowers.

What Does the Arctic Skipper Eat?

The Arctic Skipper, as a caterpillar, will eat from leaves of plants that are growing in the area that they live.  The plant is important for the caterpillar to give it enough nutrients to grow.

As an adult, the Arctic Skipper will fly as far as it needs to get energy from flowers that have nectar.  Some of the plants that they like are the Jacob’s Ladder and the Wild Iris.

Enemies of the Arctic Skipper

The Arctic Skipper does not really have any known enemies, but the biggest enemy is people.

People cut down the woodlands and it causes the trees to not regrow right and causes them to decrease in number.

When they butterfly do not have a place to live, they will die and not be able to survive their area.

Is the Arctic Skipper Endangered?

Different conservations have been set up because there are becoming less and less of the Arctic Skipper.

Sometimes this happens because the flowers and trees are cut down and the Arctic Skipper does not have enough food to eat.

In Scotland, the Arctic Skipper is protected because there are so few of them left.

Arctic Skipper Facts for Kids

• The Arctic Skipper can grow to around 1 ¼ inches.
• The Caterpillar of the Arctic Skipper loves to eat purple Reed grass.
• The Arctic Skipper is most active in May until the middle of June.
• The female of the Arctic Skipper only lays one egg on the leave and it takes around 10 days for the egg to hatch.
• It takes the Arctic Skipper caterpillar around 6 weeks to turn into a butterfly.

What Did You Learn?

• What is the Arctic Skipper?
  The Arctic Skipper is a butterfly that is found in North America, California, England, Britain, California and even Alaska.
• What kind of habitat does the Arctic Skipper have?
  The Arctic Skipper likes to live in woodsy areas but is also found close to streams, bogs, and in areas that are grasslands.
• What does the Arctic Skipper eat?
  As a caterpillar, the Arctic Skipper likes to eat plants such as purple Reed grass, as adults, the Arctic Skipper will eat nectar out of flowering plants in its area.
• Does the Arctic Skipper defend its territory?
  Yes.  The Arctic Skipper will defend its territory from other male butterflies and from insects.
• Does the Arctic Skipper have known enemies?
  No.  The Arctic Skipper has no known enemies.

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