About Polites sabuleti (Boisduval, 1852)
Polites sabuleti, commonly known as the sandhill skipper or saltgrass skipper, is a butterfly species belonging to the family Hesperiidae. This species is native to North America, where it occurs from southern British Columbia and eastern Washington, southward through California and northern Arizona to Baja California, and eastward to southeastern Wyoming, central Colorado, and northeastern New Mexico. It has been introduced as a non-native species to Hawaii. The wingspan of adult Polites sabuleti ranges from 22 to 32 mm. At high elevations within its native range, this species has one generation per year, with adult butterflies on wing from June to August. In the southern portion of its range and at low elevations, multiple generations occur each year, with active adults present from March to October. The larvae of this species feed on a variety of grass species, including Cynodon dactylon, Poa pratensis, Distichlis spicata var. stricta, Eragrostis trichodes, Agrostis scabra, Festuca idahoensis, and Festuca brachyphylla. Adult sandhill skippers feed on flower nectar.
