Diet

• Species of Amaranthaceae are likely important host plants.

• Caterpillars of the genus generally construct shelters by folding or fastening leaves with silk.

• Adults visit small flowers for nectar and may also obtain moisture from damp surfaces.

Range

• Staphylus tierra is a western Mexican species ranging from Sonora south through western Mexico to Chiapas, with an extension into El Salvador.

• It occurs in the Zihua area.

Habitat

• It occurs in tropical dry forest, thornscrub, woodland, forest edges and secondary vegetation.

• It is particularly associated with warm, relatively dry habitats in western Mexico.

• Adults can be found in sunny clearings and along vegetation margins, where their dark colouring provides effective camouflage.

Description

• A small, dark spread-wing skipper in the family Hesperiidae, subfamily Pyrginae.

• The upper surface is predominantly dark brown to blackish, with variable pale or whitish spots on the forewings.

• The underside is generally darker brown and cryptically patterned, with subtle pale markings.

• The wings have the slightly scalloped margins characteristic of Staphylus, giving members of the genus a distinctive outline.