Endangered Resources Program Species Information
Mulberry Wing (Poanes massasoit)

Overview

Species Overview

Mulberry wing (Poanes massasoit), a Special Concern butterfly, has been found in found in marshes and sedge meadows. Host plants appear to be arrow-leaved sedges including Carex stricta, and possibly C. aquatilis. This butterfly is univoltine with the flight period from mid to late June through July. Mulberry wings overwinter as partially grown larvae.

Status and NHI Documented Occurrences in Wisconsin

The table below provides information about the protected status (State and Federal Status) and the rank (S and G Ranks) for Mulberry Wing (Poanes massasoit). See the Working List Key for more information about the abbreviations used. Counties shaded blue have documented occurrences for this species in the Wisconsin Natural Heritage Inventory database. For invertebrates, dots depict locations from the "Invertebrate Atlas," a database with occurrences of rare and common aquatic and select terrestrial invertebrate species found in Wisconsin and adjacent areas. While the invertebrate atlas is a quality assured database, not all records have been verified. The map is provided as a general reference of where this species has been found to date and is not meant as a range map.

Summary Information State Status: SC/N Federal Status in Wisconsin: none State Rank: S3 Global Rank: G4 Tracked by NHI: Y Species of Greatest Conservation Need:

Detailed Information

Identification: A small dark skipper with a bright yellow airplane-shaped patch on the underside of reddish brown hindwings. Wings are relatively short and rounded. Males are black or dark brown above with a purplish sheen when fresh. Females are black with a few white spots. The mulberry wing is a folded-wing skipper, a stout-bodied butterfly that perches with closed wings and has antennae with hooked tips. Markings on the underside of the hindwings are distinctive. Wingspan: 22-29mm. Young larvae are yellowish. Later larvae are olive green. The body is covered with long yellow hairs and the head is brown. Eggs are white and round (Shull 1987).

Similar Species: Hobomok skipper (Poanes hobomok) has yellow areas below but the dorsal surface has many orange patches where the mulberry wing is nearly all dark. Like the mulberry wing, broad-winged skipper males (Poanes viator) also patrol for mates instead of perching like similar skippers.

Habitat: Wetland obligate. Marshes, sedge meadow. Restricted to areas containing patches of narrow-leaved sedges. Stays low in the sedges, flying slowly.

Nectar Source: Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata).

Host Plant: Narrow-leaved sedges including Carex stricta and possibly C. aquatilis.

Associated Species: Black dash (Euphyes conspicua). May be found with two other Special Concern species: the two-spotted skipper (Euphyes bimacula), and the broad-winged skipper (Poanes viator).

State Distribution: Mainly in central and eastern Wisconsin.

Global Distribution: Limited distribution. Maine west across Great Lake states to southern Minnesota and North Dakota. Southwest Ontario to Quebec.

Threats: Loss of wetland habitat and disruption of hydrology.

Phenology: Univoltine. Adults are present mid to late June through July.

Life History: Larvae build shelters that are made of tied leaves or live in the base of the hostplant from which they go out at night to feed. Pupation will also occur in this shelter. Mulberry wings overwinter as partially grown larvae. Mating and egg-laying occur in the afternoon. Females lay eggs singly on host leaves. A remnant-dependent species (Panzer et al 1995).

Survey Guidance: This species is restricted to patches of narrow-leafed sedges. The skippers never fly outside the sedge patches and only rarely above the tops of the plants; their normal flight is down in between the stems of the sedges, very slow and weak even when alarmed. Layberry was able to record this species for the first time in Quebec by exploring roadside ditches for the characteristic sedge patches (Layberry et al. 1998). New county records should be documented with voucher specimens.

Information originally presented as part of the Online Field Guide to Rare Lepidoptera: Bogs and Barrens.

Photos

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Mulberry Wing, below - Rocky Run Oak Savanna State Natural Area, Columbia County. Photo © Mike Reese.

Related Links

Links to Additional Mulberry Wing Information

• WisconsinButterflies.org Species Profile [Exit DNR]
• Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) [Exit DNR]
• Photos: Butterflies of Massachusetts (David Larson) [Exit DNR]

Other Links Related to Butterflies and Moths

• Wisconsin Butterflies (Mike Reese)
• More Butterfly Links
• The Field Museum [Exit DNR]
• Online Field Guide to Rare Lepidoptera: Bogs and Barrens