Bug FAQTexas Powdered Skipper
Systasea pulverulenta · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Hesperiidae
The Texas powdered skipper is a small butterfly with a wingspan of about 1 to 1.4 inches (24 to 35 mm). It lives from southern and western Texas through Mexico down to Guatemala, and adults can be seen most of the year in southern Texas. Caterpillars eat plants in the mallow family, while adults sip nectar from flowers.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wingspan ranges from 24 to 35 mm (about 0.94 to 1.38 in).
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on various mallow (Malvaceae) species. Adults feed on flower nectar.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from February through December in southern Texas.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 5 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Alabama, Oklahoma.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When can I see Texas powdered skippers?
Adults are active from February to December in southern Texas.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Hesperiidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systasea_pulverulenta
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.