Bug FAQCrossline Skipper
Polites origenes · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Hesperiidae
The crossline skipper is a small butterfly with a wingspan of about 23 to 30 mm. It lives in the eastern United States (except Florida) and in southern Ontario and Quebec, where its caterpillars feed on grasses like redtop and little bluestem and adults sip flower nectar. In Canada there is one generation from late June to mid-August, while the United States usually has two generations each year.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Polites origenes, the crossline skipper, belongs to the butterfly family Hesperiidae.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Its wingspan ranges from roughly 23 to 30 millimetres.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found across the eastern United States, except Florida, and also in southern Ontario and Quebec.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range includes the eastern United States and parts of southern Canada (Ontario and Quebec).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 43 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Massachusetts, South Carolina, New Jersey, Colorado, Connecticut.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Where does the crossline skipper live?
It occurs in the eastern United States (except Florida) and in southern Ontario and Quebec.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the caterpillars eat?
The larvae feed on grasses like redtop and little bluestem.
Source: Wikipedia
When are they active?
In Canada they appear from late June to mid-August; in the U.S. there are usually two generations each year.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Hesperiidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polites_origenes
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.