Arizona Powdered Skipper (Systasea zampa [W. H. Edwards])
Wing span: 1 - 1 1/2 inches (2.5 - 3.8 cm).
Identification: Outer margin of hindwing has 2 deep scallops. Upperside is orange-brown with darker olive-brown areas; forewing has a transparent median band that is broken below the cell.
Life history: To await females, males perch all day in gulches.
Flight: Several broods from April-October.
Caterpillar hosts: Possibly various plants in the mallow family (Malvaceae).
Adult food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Canyons, washes, and other openings in desert, thorn forest, and brushland.
Range: Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, and west Texas.
