Little Wood Satyr

Satyrs may have started out in Greek mythology, but these days you can find them in modern lepidoptery. Here are a couple of Little Wood Satyrs I saw at 2 different locations on the same spring day.

Many of the satyrines (aka "browns") abstain from nectar-feeding altogether as adult butterflies, preferring sap, rotting fruit, and other organic juices. Little Wood Satyrs break with their brethren species in this regard, and thus can sometimes be found on flowers. They're also known to feed off aphid honeydew [1].

As caterpillars the satyrines tend to chow down on grasses and sedges; perhaps the butterfly in the 1st picture is reminiscing about a memorable meal from its childhood? Or regretting that it's now completely unable to consume blades of grass?

May 18, 2023 at Fairview Farm
Photo 292810726, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

May 18, 2023 at Willowwood Arboretum
Photo 292813027, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

[1] Given their taste for aphid honeydew, I suspect but don't know that Spotted Lanternfly honeydew would also be on the menu.

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