Sandhill Skipper on Lambs Ears

Another new sighting in our garden, a Sandhill Skipper Polites sabuleti.

How cute it is!

This butterfly was flying around the native patch, landing here and there as I watched nearby.

It seemed quite small to be a Fiery or Umber Skipper.

After referring to my copy of the Field Guide to Butterflies of the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento Valley Regions by Arthur M. Shapiro and Timothy C. Manolis, I figured out that this is a Sandhill Skipper.

These little skippers are commonly found in Southern British Columbia and eastern Washington south through California and northern Arizona to Baja California; east to southeastern Wyoming, central Colorado, and northeastern New Mexico.

Various grasses such as California Fescue and Ticklegrass are host plants for the Sandhill Skipper.

We have a couple of fescues growing in the native patch.

Maybe this little one was born there.