• Butterflies
• Dragonflies
• Damselflies
• Tiger beetles
• Hike with Mike

• The butterflies:
• Skippers
  • Spread-wing Skippers
  • Skipperlings
  • Grass-Skippers
• Grass-Skippers
  • Swarthy Skipper
  • Least Skipper
  • Poweshiek Skipperling
  • European Skipper
  • Fiery Skipper
  • Common Branded Skipper
  • Ottoe Skipper
  • Leonard’s Skipper
  • Cobweb Skipper
  • Indian Skipper
  • Peck’s Skipper
  • Tawny-edged Skipper
  • Crossline Skipper
  • Long Dash
  • Northern Broken-Dash
  • Little Glassywing
  • Sachem
  • Delaware Skipper
  • Byssus Skipper
  • Mulberry Wing
  • Hobomok Skipper
  • Broad-winged Skipper
  • Dion Skipper
  • Black Dash
  • Two-spotted Skipper
  • Dun Skipper
  • Dusted Skipper
  • Pepper and Salt Skipper
  • Common Roadside-Skipper
  • Eufala Skipper
  • Arogos Skipper

Poweshiek Skipperling

(Oarisma poweshiek)

This species is listed as an endangered species by the Wisconsin DNR . The Poweshiek Skipperling is in decline throughout its distribution and there is a lot of additional information about this species available online including a species profile on the Xerces website and a status assessment done by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. I looked for this species for two years at Puchyan Prairie SNA before I located this species, and have now seen it the last three years that I have searched for it. This is not an easily accessible location and during 2004, while it was flooded, in order to get back to the Poweshiek Skipperling habitat you had to walk through a long stretch of water over a foot deep. In the last two years it has been moist but it is still very difficult walking through a sedge meadow. I have seen this species mainly by searching all the flowering black-eyed susans and looking for this species nectaring on it.

Identifying characteristics: This is a small skipper that is dark brown above with some light orange along the wing margins and a lighter orange head. Below this species is orange with very prominent whitened veins as their most distinguishing characteristic.

Similar species: This species, because of its distinctive white veins below and limited distribution should not be confused with any other Wisconsin species. When I was searching for this species for the first time, I saw Least Skippers flying in the moister areas near the Poweshiek habitat and wondered if they could possibly be this species, and I followed many individuals until I was sure that they were Least Skippers. Once I saw my first Poweshiek Skipperling, it was obviously very different from the Least Skippers.

Habitat: In Wisconsin this species is found mainly in less disturbed, wet mesic habitats. I have only seen the habitat at Puchyan Prairie SNA and I have only seen this species the drier areas, almost always within 100 meters of the oak woodland found in the middle of the State Natural Area.

Flight: This species has a single brood per year and may be found from late June until late July.

Abundance: A Wisconsin endangered species that is currently found at only two sites in Wisconsin. At the Puchyan Prairie site, the largest number that I have seen in 12 individuals in the last three years.

Submit a Poweshiek Skipperling sighting »