Gesta pacuvius lilius

Dyar's Duskywing

This subspecies wasn't thought to be in our area initially, but in fact* it flies in the Piutes and Greenhorn Mountains in the summer. For the rest of southern California, we have subspecies callidus. It probably uses Ceanothus cordulatus (mountain whitethorn) as its larval food plant. The type locality is Kaslo, in British Columbia.

See Ken Davenport, Butterflies of southern California in 2018: updating Emmel and Emmel's 1973 Butterflies of southern California, available online here (as of Dec. 2023).

Gesta pacuvius lilius - Dyer's Pacuvius Duskywing
Female Gesta pacuvius lilius from Alder Creek on the Sherman Pass Road in Tulare Co. May 16, 2014.
Photograph of Mountain whitethorn - Ceanothus cordulatus
Ceanothus cordulatus is what I suspect is the main host for this skipper in our region.
Original description by Dyar of Gesta pacuvius lilius
The original description of lilius from 1904 by Harrison G. Dyar - thus the common name "Dyar's duskywing". Published in the Proceedings of the United States National Museum

©Dennis Walker