The Dingy Skipper, Erynnis tages, is a butterfly

Butterfly

A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...

 of the Hesperiidae family. It ranges from Europe across Asia Minor

Asia Minor

Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...

 and Central Asia

Central Asia

Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...

 to the Amur

Amur

The Amur or Heilong Jiang is the world's tenth longest river, forming the border between the Russian Far East and Northeastern China .-Course:...

 region.Erynnis tages favours open grassy habitats up to 2,000 metres above sea level. The insect flies in two generations from May-June and July-August but in northern regions and at the high altitudes, there is only a single generation. Larval host plants in Europe are Eryngium

Eryngium

Eryngium is a genus in the family Apiaceae of about 230 species of annuals and perennials with hairless and usually spiny leaves, and dome-shaped umbels of flowers resembling those of thistles. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, with the centre of diversity in South America. Some species...

, Lotus

Lotus

- Botany :*Lotus , various botanical taxa*Lotus *Lotus Flower, Nelumbo nucifera- Motor cars :*Lotus Cars, a British motor vehicle manufacturer**Team Lotus, a British Formula One racing team that competed between 1954 and 1994...

 , Coronilla

Coronilla

The genus Coronilla contains Old World shrubs and herbs.Coronilla species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the case-bearers Coleophora coronillae and Coleophora vicinella.Species include:* Coronilla glauca* Coronilla iberica* Coronilla minima* Coronilla...

, Medicago

Medicago

Medicago is a genus of flowering plants, commonly known as medick or burclover. The name is based on Latin medica 'alfalfa, lucerne,' from 'Median .'...

, Hippocrepis

Hippocrepis

Hippocrepis is a genus of ornamental plants in the family Fabaceae....

 etc.
Subspecies are little defined and include unicolor Freyer, 1852 found in Transcaucasia.

Appearance, behaviour and distribution

This well camouflaged, brown and grey butterfly can be confused with the Grizzled Skipper

Grizzled Skipper

The Grizzled Skipper Pyrgus malvae is a butterfly of the Hesperiidae family.-Appearance, behaviour and distribution:With its characteristic chequered black and white pattern this butterfly is quite distinctive although old, faded individuals can be mistaken for the Dingy Skipper or the Sideridis...

, the Mother Shipton Moth

Mother Shipton Moth

The Mother Shipton Moth, is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It was classified by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759, and is also known under the name of Euclidia mi. In Finnish it is known as Piirtoyökkönen and in German as Scheck-Tageule. Its habitat spans over most of Europe, Siberia, the Far East...

 or the Burnet Companion Moth

Burnet Companion Moth

The Burnet Companion Moth, is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in most of the Palearctic ecozone.The larvae feed on Viola, Trifolium and Trifolium species....

. It is probably the most moth-like British butterfly and normally rests with its wings in a moth-like fashion. It is widely but patchily distributed across Britain. It occurs further north than any other skipper in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 with some isolated colonies in the Inverness

Inverness

Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...

 region. It is also one of the two skippers to be found in Ireland, again with a patchy distribution but the main strongholds along the western side. A variety of habitats are used including chalk downland, woodland clearings, coastal dunes, railway lines and waste ground. It is on the decline in several European countries including the UK.

Life cycle and food plants

The eggs are laid singly on the tender young leaves of Bird's-foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus, the favoured foodplant (although Horseshoe Vetch

Horseshoe Vetch

Hippocrepis comosa, known as Horseshoe Vetch, is a flowering plant. It is the sole food of the butterfly species Polyommatus coridon, or the Chalkhill Blue....

 Hippocrepis comosa and Greater Bird's-foot Trefoil Lotus pendunculatus are sometimes used). The caterpillar

Caterpillar

Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...

 creates a shelter by spinning leaves together and feeds until fully grown in August. It then creates a larger tent to form a hibernaculum

Hibernaculum

Hibernaculum can refer to:* Hibernaculum , the location chosen by an animal for hibernation...

 where it hibernates. Pupa

Pupa

A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...

tion occurs the following spring without further feeding. Adults are on the wing from mid-May till mid-June.