Summary ⁴

Panoquina ocola, the ocola skipper or long-winged skipper, is a species of butterfly of the Hesperiidae family. It is found in Paraguay north through tropical America and the West Indies to south Texas. Strays north to southeast Arizona, west Texas, central Missouri, Ohio, central Pennsylvania, and Long Island.

Description ⁵

Forewings are long, projecting far beyond the hind wings when the butterfly is at rest. Upper side of wings is dark brown; forewing with some pale spots. Underside of hind wing is brown with no markings; female has a blue-purple iridescent sheen.
Wing Span: 1 3/8 - 1 11/16 inches (3.5 - 4.3 cm).

Distribution ⁵

Along the Gulf Coast of Texas to Florida and north to eastern North Carolina. Migrates north in the fall to Virginia, Indiana, and New York.

Larval Host Plants ⁵

Rice (Oryza sativa), sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum), and trompetilla grass (Hymenachne amplexicaulis) in Puerto Rico.

North american ecology (us and canada) ⁶

Panoquina ocola is a year-round resident in the southeastern United States from Virginia along the Gulf Coast and Florida, and south to Argentina and the Greater Antilles. This species migrates north in the summer reaching Indiana and New York between Sept. 1-Oct.31 (Scott 1986). Habitats are open (usually damp) areas. Host plants are grasses, especially Oryza sativa in Louisiana. There are multiple flights all year in south Florida, April1-Oct. 31 in Georgia (Scott 1986).

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Judy Gallagher, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ocola_-_Panoquina_ocola,_Julie_Metz_Wetlands,_Woodbridge,_Virginia_-_29240580203.jpg
2. (c) Mary Keim, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/38514062@N03/6306224209/
3. (c) Mary Keim, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/38514062@N03/29854784262/
4. Adapted by Will Kuhn from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panoquina_ocola
5. (c) GTMResearchReserve, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://www.inaturalist.org/guide_taxa/363254
6. (c) Leslie Ries, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/20626426

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

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