Wednesday 18 April 2007

Essex Skipper (Thymelicus lineola)

OTHER NAMES: European Skipper
Latin Etymology: Thymelicus ("theatrical") lineola ("small line")
Adult Essex Skipper (subspecies T. l. lineola) at Geddington, Northants - July 2009

Featured Subspecies: Thymelicus lineola lineola
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 27-30mm
UK Status: Least Concern IUCN Red List: Least Concern

While at first glance this may look like a moth, it is in fact a butterfly. They are currently expanding their range northwards in the UK. Care should be taken to differentiate it from the very similar small skipper.  The way to successfully differentiate between this and the Small Skipper is the black tips on antennae rather than orange ones for the Small Skipper.  They are found primarily in the South East of England up to the Midlands to the North and Somerset to the West.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera 

Family: Hesperiidae 
Genus: Thymelicus 
SUBSPECIES: T. l. kushana, T. l. lineola, T. l.pseudothaumas, T. l. semicolon

- Sighting Locations -
UNITED KINGDOM A common resident species which is seen in Summer
 - Seen at sites including Geddington and Brigstock

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto

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