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Silver-spotted skipper

FILE - A silver-spotted skipper
Wikimedia
FILE - A silver-spotted skipper

Epargyreus clarus, commonly known as the silver-spotted skipper, is an insect in the butterfly family.

Transcript (edited for clarity):

RUDY MANCKE:

Hi, this is Rudy Mancke from USC for NatureNotes.

I was at a little roadside market with my wife, and there were some hanging baskets there with what's usually called a silver-spotted skipper.

Skippers have the ends of antennae that kind of have a little bit of curve on them. Moth would be straight or fuzzy, and then a butterfly usually has a straight antenna with a round part on the end.

But this silver-spotted skipper is easy to identify because of a bright silver spot on the underside of the hind wings. The tongue was out and it was going from lantana to lantana to lantana getting nectar so it can keep flying. That's a beautiful skipper, a widespread in South Carolina.

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Rudy Mancke served as naturalist and co-host of South Carolina ETV's NatureScene, which began its long run in 1978. His field trips, broadcast nationwide, have earned him a legion of dedicated viewers. Rudy's knowledge of the complex inner-workings of different ecosystems and his great admiration for the natural world make him the perfect guide. In fact, the National Wildlife Federation and the Garden Club of America honored his commitment to resource conservation with special awards. Since retiring from SCETV, Rudy has gone on to teach at the University of South Carolina, Columbia.