Bug FAQTwo-banded Checkered-Skipper
Pyrgus ruralis · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Hesperiidae
The two-banded checkered-skipper is a small skipper butterfly with a wingspan of about 25 to 29 mm. Its larvae feed on several herbaceous plants in the rose family, such as Potentilla drummondii and various Horkelia species, while adults sip nectar from flowers.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Pyrgus ruralis, known as the two-banded checkered-skipper, belongs to the skipper butterfly family Hesperiidae.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The wingspan ranges from 25 to 29 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in mountainous and foothill areas of southern British Columbia, southwestern Alberta, and extends southward to central California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on herbaceous Rosaceae plants such as Potentilla drummondii, Horkelia fusca, H. tenuiloba and H. bolanderi clevelandii. Adult butterflies drink nectar from flowers.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
There is one generation each year, occurring from April through July.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from April to July.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range includes parts of western Canada and the western United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 13 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When can I see adult two-banded checkered-skippers?
Adults are active from April through July, with one generation per year.
Source: Wikipedia
Where is the two-banded checkered-skipper found?
It occurs from southern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta down to central California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado, with an endangered subspecies east of San Diego.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Hesperiidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrgus_ruralis
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.