Funereal Duskywing
Erynnis funeralis (Scudder & Burgess, 1870)

Click on image for larger view

Diagnosis: Very similar to the Zarucco Duskywing (E. zarucco), the Funereal Duskywing differs by having bright white fringes on the hindwing. Wingspan: 33 to 45 mm.

Range: Erynnis funeralis occurs from South America to the southern and southwestern U.S., migrating north each year to the central U.S. and, rarely, to Point Pelee, Ontario.

Specimen collection data
and dynamic map

Similar Species: E. zarucco has brown fringed hindwings. [compare images]

Early Stages: The larva is light green with a dark dorsal stripe and yellow lateral lines; the head is black. In the U.S. the foodplants are various Fabaceae (Opler and Malikul, 1992).

Abundance: This distinctive duskywing is common in the extreme south of the U.S., less common farther north; an extremely rare visitor in Canada.

Flight Season: It flies from March to October in the south; in Canada it is recorded only in the fall.

Habits: In the U.S., this is usually a species of roadsides and woods edges.

Remarks: The Funereal Duskywing has been recorded in Canada only twice, at Point Pelee, Ontario: 6 October 1990 (Wormington, 1991, 1992b) and 23 September 1992.

© 2002. This material is reproduced with permission from The Butterflies of Canada by Ross A. Layberry, Peter W. Hall, and J. Donald Lafontaine. University of Toronto Press; 1998.