Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Hesperiidae Scientific name Polites sabuleti | Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Polites Rank Species | |
Similar Ochlodes sylvanoides, Hesperia juba, Poanes melane, Phyciodes mylitta, Pyrgus ruralis | ||
Polites sabuleti, the sandhill skipper or saltgrass skipper, is a butterfly in the Hesperiidae family. It is found from southern British Columbia and eastern Washington, south through California and northern Arizona to Baja California and east to south-eastern Wyoming, central Colorado, and north-eastern New Mexico. It is an introduced species in Hawaii.
The wingspan is 22–32 mm. There is one generation with adults on wing from June to August at high elevations. There are several generations from March to October in the southern part of its range and at low elevations.
The larvae feed on various grasses, including Cynodon dactylon, Poa pratensis, Distichlis spicata var. stricta, Eragrostis trichodes, Agrostis scabra, Festuca idahoensis, and Festuca brachyphylla. Adults feed on flower nectar.