Large chequered skipper
| Large chequered skipper | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Hesperiidae |
| Subfamily: | Heteropterinae |
| Genus: | Heteropterus Duméril, 1806 |
| Species: | H. morpheus
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| Binomial name | |
| Heteropterus morpheus | |
| Synonyms | |
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The large chequered skipper (Heteropterus morpheus) is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is the single member of the monotypic genus Heteropterus. The species can be found in isolated populations in Europe and east across the Palearctic to Central Asia and Korea. It is endangered in the Netherlands.
The length of the forewings is 15–18 mm. The butterfly is on the wing from June to August, depending on the location.
The larvae feed on Eriophorum, Poa annua, Calamagrostis canescens, Brachypodium and Molinia species (including ).
As can be seen, the butterfly has a very distinctive and attractive underside but a drab upperside (which is rarely seen, as it usually settles with wings closed). This butterfly is very similar to the Chequered skipper, but they have their own attributes that allow them to be distinguished.
The flight is just as distinctive and indeed provides immediate identification of the species: it appears to bounce through the air with little sense of direction, almost as if drunk.
In France, it has been seen in the south west including, in 2011, the Hautes-Pyrénées department.
References[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Heteropterus morpheus. |
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Wikispecies has information related to Large chequered skipper. |
- ^ Heteropterus at funet.fi
External links[]
 | This Hesperiidae-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by . |
- Butterflies described in 1771
- Heteropterinae
- Butterflies of Europe
- Taxa named by Peter Simon Pallas
- Hesperiidae stubs